Chapter 60: The Silent Hymn
“Mo-monster! Don’t co any closer!”
“Aaaargh!”
Beyond the blood-soaked forest, only the sound of screams and a wind heavy with despair echoed.
The mangled corpses strewn across the ground were all shredded and torn apart in grotesque ways. Among the few still alive, so were being torn limb from limb by the monsters.
“The prey tried to escape.”
A middle-aged man with a dry expression stood before the carnage, holding a large book. Brushing the blood splatters off his face, the man—Dominic—turned to a nearby rcenary and spoke.
“They ntioned the Heart of the Immortal?”
“P-please spare … Aaaack!”
“I detest death.”
Dominic’s cold interrogation was directed at this rcenary because he appeared to be the leader of the group. The man had let slip an intriguing piece of information: the Heart of the Immortal.
For so reason, the mont Dominic heard those words, his own heart began pounding uncontrollably.
“I-I’ll tell you everything! Just please…!”
“Answer my questions, and you’ll live.”
“I-I heard it clearly! A red monster appeared at the altar and started attacking the dwarves!”
“The altar? Did you just say the altar?”
The rcenary had been leading a procession of over a thousand people as they tried to escape Laup Forest.
When the chiras appeared, the rcenaries sacrificed hundreds of others as bait to buy themselves ti.
They were confident they could escape.
But that assumption turned out to be a deadly mistake.
‘The dwarves were right…’
No matter how many sacrifices they offered, the chiras kept coming.
When they ran out of sacrifices, the chiras began feasting on the rcenaries instead. Like ravenous beasts unshackled, the monsters tore into their prey with unrelenting hunger.
It hadn’t taken long for over a thousand people to be slaughtered.
Now, this rcenary was the only survivor.
‘I can’t die here…’
Desperate to cling to life, he began spewing every bit of information he could think of.
He rambled about the dwarves who had appeared at the research facility, the current situation in the lab, and even the na of the C-rank rcenary Al, who had relayed the news.
Words tumbled out of him in a disorganized flood, his face drenched with tears and despair.
Dominic watched the desperate rcenary with cold, emotionless eyes.
Would a human feel pity for a pig being fattened for slaughter?
“You… you’ll spare ?”
Dominic nodded and gestured toward Arena, his daughter.
“I’ll grant you eternal life. However, your head isn’t necessary—just your body.”
“Wha-what are you saying?! Aaaaargh!”
Arena ripped the rcenary’s head off in one swift motion.
She discarded the severed head onto a growing pile of others—rcenaries who had been slaughtered by her hands.
Dominic wiped the blood off Arena with a handkerchief.
“……”
anwhile, Arena slowly turned her gaze, staring blankly in the direction of the research facility.
It was a small but noticeable change, and Dominic’s eyes sparkled with interest.
The closer she got to the research facility, the more responsive she beca.
It was as if sothing was drawing her in.
What was she seeing with those empty, lifeless eyes?
“The Heart of the Immortal.”
When Dominic muttered those words, Arena shifted her gaze toward him.
Her reaction confird his suspicion.
The information brought by the escaped prey from the research lab was critical.
And Arena’s response was unmistakably connected to the Heart of the Immortal.
“So, the mimic is dead, and a red monster appeared in its place.”
Dominic had realized the mimic had died the mont their connection was severed.
It was clear the dwarves were behind it.
But they couldn’t have done it alone.
There had to be a powerful individual among them.
“Dorneth, the Lord of Beneta, must have intervened.”
Dominic didn’t know how Dorneth had discovered his research facility or why he had attacked. But that no longer mattered.
Dominic’s focus was solely on the red monster.
For years, he had studied the mimic, uncovering the secrets of the mana stones it produced.
‘Mana stones are nothing but a byproduct.’
The true value of the Crystal Mimic lay in the ancient power it housed—the source of the mana stones.
The mimic was a golden goose, producing mana stones endlessly.
The only reason he hadn’t “cut open the goose” earlier was that Arena’s body hadn’t been complete.
But if that power had now burst forth…
‘The new power source for Arena.’
That red monster belonged to him. No one else could have it.
With the power source in his hands, and Arena fully awakened, Dominic planned to confront the one he despised most.
‘Bersen Clarke. Just wait.’
At the thought of Grand Duke Clarke, Dominic’s expression cracked for the first ti, a glimr of raw emotion surfacing.
One day, he would turn the duke into a chira and put an end to his vengeance.
‘I need to retrieve the journal as soon as we arrive.’
Dominic extended a hand, and Arena clasped it, following him silently.
“Today is your birthday. Let’s celebrate with a grand party.”
As Dominic opened his book wide, the scattered chiras in the forest froze for a mont. Then, as if in unison, they turned their heads toward the cliff.
Screeeeaaak!
Kraaawk!
Monts later, the chiras surged toward the cliff like a raging tide.
Black clouds of chiras filled the forest. Soon, the enormous horde spilled out of the woods and onto the open plains.
And then—
GROOOOOOOOOOAAAAARRRRRR!
“……!”
A spine-chilling roar erupted from the cliff ahead.
The chiras, in their frenzied charge, halted instantly.
The aura carried by the roar was violent and oppressive, asserting dominance over everything in the area.
Dominic trembled.
The source had appeared.
It was the core.
These chiras were rely experintal creations born from its byproducts. The mont its aura erupted, they cowered in submission.
Only Arena moved forward, unfazed by the pressure.
Dominic felt both terror and overwhelming joy.
‘At last!’
His eyes glead with ecstasy.
Dominic flipped through the pages of his book. Within it was a trove of ancient knowledge he had extracted from the mimic.
Monts later, the book began to tremble, and a violet mist enveloped the chiras.
As the mist surrounded them, the chiras began to transform.
“Go.”
Screeech!
The chiras, which had been hesitating, now surged toward the source of the roar with renewed ferocity.
BOOOOM!
The roar shook the cliff violently, causing it to groan and crack. Sothing deep within the cliff was stirring, struggling to erge.
“……”
From his vantage point, Dominic noticed the cluster of prey trapped near the cliff’s entrance.
There were many of them, but to Dominic, they were nothing more than nuisances.
He raised his hand.
It was ti to execute them.
***
“Hey.”
“Yes?”
“I think your ‘golden ti’ has already passed.”
“What do you an?”
“I an, we’re screwed.”
Fenry had stepped outside, leaning against the cliff as she crossed her arms. She scanned the forest, sensing the savage energy radiating from all directions.
From the left, the right, and straight ahead, the oppressive presence of countless chiras surged toward them.
Even the air reeked of blood.
Though she couldn’t see it directly, Fenry could vividly imagine the horrifying sight of a forest vomiting forth its monsters.
Any normal person would wet themselves at the re thought of it.
“Things are just as chaotic behind us.”
Fenry took a puff from her pipe and glanced toward the cliff’s entrance. The situation there wasn’t any better.
Crack! Crash!
“Ahhh! The cliff is crumbling!”
Thousands of people gathered in the clearing scread as the ground beneath them shook violently.
The cliff began to split, sending debris tumbling down. The tremors grew stronger, and the entire structure seed on the verge of collapse.
Fear spread like wildfire.
“We need to get out before it collapses!”
“Hold your ground! Wait for the signal!”
“But…!”
“You all swore to follow the plan, didn’t you?”
The dwarves blocked those trying to flee with their weapons, forcing them to stay in place.
They knew the area was dangerous, and they, too, wanted to escape. But with Dorneth glaring at them, they could only grit their teeth and hold the line.
All eyes turned to one person standing alone at the entrance.
The man they were waiting for.
Arthur Clayton.
He stood silently, watching the crimson sky, as though entranced by the sunset.
If not for Fenry Chaser’s guarantee, Dorneth would never have gone along with such a reckless plan, even if Arthur Clayton was Sharbadin’s savior.
A Dark Elf as sensitive about his own survival as he was about money.
Dorneth trusted Fenry’s instincts more than Arthur’s.
She was convinced that following Arthur’s orders would maximize everyone’s chances of survival.
But what exactly had she seen to co to such a conclusion?
Dorneth found himself growing curious about this man called Arthur.
Just then, their conversation floated over.
“It’s not ti to move yet.”
“You crazy bastard, if you’re only trying to save your own hide, just say it now. At least let live!”
“Didn’t I tell you? The timing will be brief—just a fleeting mont.”
“How brief? Shorter than your performance in bed?”
“Of course, it’ll be shorter.”
“You’re not… you’re not a one-minute man, are you? That’d be a disaster.”
“Do you not trust ?”
“How can I? I haven’t even tried sleeping with you yet.”
“……”
How could they joke around like that in a situation like this?
Dorneth suddenly felt a wave of unease.
He was just about to speak up when—
GROOOOOOOOOOAAAAARRRRRR!
“……!!!”
A savage roar ripped through the air from deep within the tunnel.
Crackle―!
The oppressive roar made Dorneth’s face twist involuntarily.
This was no ordinary sound.
It carried an aura that pressed down on the entire body, as if crushing it under sheer weight.
While it couldn’t be compared to the absolute dominance of Dragon Fear, the pressure was eerily similar.
“…Damn it.”
His worst fears had been realized.
Sharbadin’s body had gone rigid. Looking around, he saw that everyone—save for the mana users—had frozen in place like statues.
Their expressions were locked in terror.
Dorneth quickly released his mana, spreading it outward to ease Sharbadin’s rigid body.
Petrified bodies like hers could only be freed using mana.
Just as Dorneth prepared to issue orders to his knights—
Screeeech―!
“A m-monster!”
“Dominic’s forces are attacking!”
Chiras had appeared outside.
“Damn it all! Why now of all tis?!”
Dorneth was montarily overwheld.
Thousands of people were paralyzed from the roar. Even if the knights sprang into action, it would take ti to resolve the situation. If they failed to recover in ti, the signal to move would an nothing.
In desperation, he turned his gaze toward the entrance.
“…Huh?”
But that guy—Arthur—was already running toward the clearing.
‘What the hell is he doing?’
Arthur, standing in the middle of a crowd of thousands, suddenly rolled up his sleeves. Clenching his fists, he closed his eyes for a brief mont.
And then, he snapped them open.
Flash—!!
“……!”
Golden light filled the clearing.
A dazzling wave of radiance surged through the air, expanding outward at incredible speed.
As the light swept over the crowd, Sharbadin—who had been slumped lifelessly on Dorneth’s back—exhaled sharply, her blocked breaths finally releasing. She gasped, inhaling deeply, her chest rising and falling rapidly.
The golden wave washed over everyone gathered in the clearing.
Suddenly, heavy breathing broke out across the crowd.
It was as if they had all returned from the brink of death.
Fear gave way to an eerie calmness, and serenity returned to their faces.
Instinctively, people closed their eyes, letting the light envelop them, as though listening to its silent song.
“…What is this?”
Dorneth found himself captivated by the scene, overtaken by an inexplicable emotion.
This light—
It was like a silent hymn.
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