Episode 1078 The Sinners’ Opening (2)
Clinton, who had volunteered as a coachman while Isabella was active as a lucky melody singer, moved to the huge city of Gargant with his wife and daughter.
They accepted the widespread evacuation recommendation.
I was worried about my family living among complete strangers in the refugee settlement, but fortunately, thanks to Isabella’s help, I was able to find a pretty decent house in that Gargant.
My daughter, Marilyn, had her eyes sparkling at the window overlooking the street.
“Dad, are we living here? Are we big city people now? Wowww!”“I wonder if we’re being too much of a burden to Isabella, honey…”
His wife, Wena, expressed concern while pressing down on the luxurious sofa with a look of wonder.
Clinton also understood that feeling very well.
He cured his wife and daughter, who were dying from Lee Hyung-jong’s deadly poison, with alchemy, helped them earn enough money to live a comfortable life that an ordinary coachman could not even imagine, looked after them out of concern when the Blood-Crying Plague was rampant… Heeven provided them with a house, telling them to stay in the safe Gargant because this war was particularly dangerous.
It was only natural to feel indebted.Even though she always used to say that she was able to get this far thanks to the Clinton family.
The time to repay the debt will come someday.
Clinton carefully stroked the lucky gold coin necklace. Wena and Marilyn never took the lucky necklace off their shoulders, either, asIsabella had given one to each of the Clinton family when she retired as a musician.
───Waaah!
A loud noise is heard from outside.
That’s right.
Today is the day an important judgment regarding the war is to be handed down in Gargant. As he frequently reads international newspapers, he was well-versed in the rumors in his own way.
“Wena, I’ll be right back, so keep a close eye on Marilyn from here…….”“Let’s go out together.”
With newspapers scattered in the living room, Wena was not unaware of the international situation.
“We shouldn’t just cover their eyes because they are young. Of course, it is absolutely not a scene a child should see… but still, I think they need to know what they need to know. As a parent.”“…That’s right. You’re right.”
The sun does not disappear just because you cover it with your palm.That is the reality.
They roughly unpacked the luggage they had struggled to bring and prepared to head out again. The crowds were going to be massive. Holding hands tightly with Marilyn between them, the Clintons stepped onto the crowded street.
“You’re coming out late.”“Oh.”
A woman with her entire body covered in a robe is leaning against the wall, waiting for the Clinton family. Although the shadow of the hood completely obscures her face, there was no way to mistake her for someone else.
“I didn’t expect to reunite this soon. You firmly refused even when I offered you travel expenses, and left as if you’d never see me again…”“I don’t know anything about this city. Wouldn’t it be better if someone who knows could guide me? It’s a waste of time for me to figure everything out on my own.”“Hello, you are a very beautiful lady!”“Hi, little one.”“Have you found a place to stay? If not, you could stay with us.”“It’s fine. Finding a place to stay right now isn’t that hard. I owe you a debt, but it’s stifling to be stuck between happy families all alone.”
Clinton let out a hollow laugh.
“Guiding you is easy. We are on our way to the square, so I will explain as we go.”“I’ll follow you on my own, so don’t look back. Take it easy with your family. Ask me if you have any questions.”“I will do so.”“By the way, what about the travel expenses you mentioned earlier?”“Tell me if you are short.”
A wad of banknotes clutched in the woman’s hand.
The Clinton family walked on as if the woman did not even exist. They did not know her name, but they did not care at all.This was because Isabella had not revealed her name until her retirement, either.Experience had accumulated and turned into familiarity.
Thump, thump.
Woman – The Empress of Del Harun, Hisril Del Roharun, took the banknotes and followed Clinton. She only rolled her eyes, thoroughly concealing the beauty she prided herself on.
“This presence… This is a surveillance zone, too. It doesn’t seem like there’s a special event today. Constantly controlling such a massive city? Is it a transcendent being obsessed with territory?”
Hisril, defeated by Verden in the southern part of the Eastern Continent, barely managed to escape through the Four Gates, but was soon flung out of the passage and crash-landed on the Central Continent.
My energy was completely depleted, and my whole body was in shambles.
If Clinton hadn’t given him the potion diluted with Lisandro’s fruit out of goodwill, it would have taken a considerable amount of time just to walk again like this.Of course, although he looked fine on the outside, his internal injuries were still severe, so fighting was out of the question. Clinton’s potion was also much weaker than Adrian’s.
So, Hythril entered Gargant with Clinton’s help. She had decided it was a place where she could get ample rest without being disturbed.As soon as she entered the city and parted ways with the Clinton family, she began to think about how to fully enjoy her freedom. Money? She could earn that much by taking out a few dozen people in the back alleys.
However… an unexpected problem arose.
Here, Gargant.
A faint presence can be felt from all directions,as if a transparent magical fog has settled over the city.
If Hisril had not reflexively lowered his presence to the very bottom, he would have been discovered without even a moment to react.
It was just a hunch, but it seemed they were reacting particularly sensitively to transcendent beings.At this rate, using force was impossible.Hisril’s plan to become an overnight millionaire by wiping out the back-alley crime organizations that were a given in a big city was thwarted from the very beginning.
In the end, all that remained was a beautiful transcendent being unable to reveal her presence. Clinton’s allowance was indispensable if she wanted to live out of sight.Well, she had no intention of living with him.She could just sleep in an inn or on the street. She wasn’t that shameless.
“Outer Realm, you said it was Ignacia. The ability to establish a control domain of this size, even if you put in a lot of effort. You are quite different from the mental transcendents I know. I must not run into you right now.”
Hisril concealed his dignity as if wearing winter clothes in the middle of summer.As he followed the Clinton family around, asking questions occasionally, he arrived at the main avenue leading straight from the gates of Gargant to the Great Square.
A vast crowd split to the left and right to watch.Powerful figures controlling the crowd.
It’s practically a festival.
Not long after, the shouts of the people praising the World Union subsided. The atmosphere had become quiet. It was at that very moment that the sound of wheels rolling began to echo long and deep through the silent city center.
I see. You really set the mood, Verden.
Hisril licked his lips while looking at a familiar face.
He is the perfect scapegoat to boost morale to the maximum before the war.
Clang… … Clang… … .
The metal prison perched on the transport wagon vibrated slightly as if it were alive.The transcendent being trapped inside slowly opened their eyes.
Lunesica Anternoa.
A sinner, symbolizing all the evil perpetrated by the glory of the corpse, was heading toward the execution ground.
* * *
Even in the First War of the Transcendents, Transcendents were not executed in this manner.This was also the case before the rise of the Xerion Empire.
As transcendent forces pursuing different agendas dominated the Eastern, Central, and Western continents respectively, they clashed repeatedly and shed blood; however, while they killed a transcendent being, there were virtually no instances of them being captured alive.
The correct stance was to kill hostile transcendents on the spot if possible.
Because if we let him live, we don’t know what he might do.He could become a threat later.Even if we completely restrain him, we cannot rest easy.
They themselves know best just how persistent and tenacious the Transcendents are.Since it was more advantageous to eliminate a single Transcendent, regardless of the cost, they did not even consider prisoner negotiations in the first place.
Clang… … Clang… … .
From servant to sinner.
Lunesica Anternoa, the second servant of the glory of the corpse, the soul plunderer, raised her gaze from the floor with a sneer.
The sky was clear.It was warm, sunny weather.
The world does look different.
Everything felt futile yet vivid. This contradiction wasn’t all that bad. That is why she felt no hesitation.
“A massacre in the sanctuary of the Church…….”“Because of the plague, we…….”“My homeland to the undead…….”
The crowd merely whispered their own tragedies, unable to pour them out with all their might. The eyes gazing at Lunesica were mostly filled not with resentment, but with terror.Even though she had been neutralized, ordinary people could not overcome the overwhelming presence of her very existence.
Even if everyone else dies, he is a transcendent being.A transcendent being who is still alive.
Those who knew the power of the Transcendent actually glared at Lunesica as she headed toward death, with palpable tension even greater than that of ordinary people, as if watching her.
Ignorant things.
Lunesica despised the golden holy crosses hanging around their necks, one after another.
Clang!
A stopped escort wagon.A door that opens automatically as the inertia disappears.
widely.
Luneska walked down alone and stepped onto Gargant barefoot. There was no one to guide her, nor anyone to drag her along while shouting at her.Amidst the silence of others, she simply stood alone, gazing at the vast square, before moving forward.
A black robe contrasting with the day.
It wasn’t luxurious enough to be off-putting, but it wasn’t shabby enough to be looked down upon either.
Gurgle… … Gurgle… …
Lunesica was wearing special restraints with her wrists bound together and her ankles decorated individually. The chains attached to the restraints dragged along the road as she walked, creating a sharp, spine-chilling noise.
The people’s silence grew even deeper.
The inhuman aspect of showing not even a hint of emotion with death right before one’s eyes was not something for weak humans to judge, and it naturally elevated the status of a transcendent being.
“…….”
Having arrived at the center of the square, she climbed the stairs at a moderate pace. This glorious sinner finally ascended the scaffold and faced the executioner.
Lunesica faced Verden in the space viewed by the world.
A solemn face. How cunning.
Muttering a brief thought to herself, Luneska stood in the center of the execution platform.She stared straight ahead.The ignorant crowd, addicted to the light, looked at her.
It was then.
Paaaaaaaat.
Four beams of magical power originating from the east, west, north, and south pointed toward the sky. It was a light that originated from the rooftop of a high-rise building, not Verden.
The citizens murmured at the sudden artificial magical phenomenon.
“W-what on earth is going on…?!”“Magical power all of a sudden?”“Judging by the fact that the Phases aren’t reacting, it looks like something Eon pulled.”
With virtually every street leading to the square packed with people, it felt as though the entire massive city were shaking at the slightest movement.The number of onlookers gathered here was reminiscent of the World Assembly of Gargant.
Someone pointed at the sky above the execution platform.
“Wait! Everyone, look over there!”“That is…….”
Four beams of magical power were refracted and separated, splitting into countless lights, and they rapidly began to form geometric shapes.
[Sensitivity. Within margin of error. Good reception.]
[Confirmed. I will connect the communication device.]
A new collaborative creation invented by Alpha and Beta, a form of Memory Golem movement—Image Golem.
While the Memory Golem repeatedly displays recorded scenes, the Image Golem transcends spatial limitations by projecting the current scene externally through another Image Golem.
Whoosh.
The sight of the execution platform woven with magic, which had grown so large that it could be seen by the entire crowd gathered near the square, was recreated exactly as it was.Even the real-time movements of Verden and Luneska were reflected.
It’s not just Gargant.
Scenes of this execution are unfolding in ‘major cities across the continent’ as well. Indeed, the entire world is watching Luneska’s death.
“New magic technique…….”
Wizards who crafted magic items, whether as a hobby or for work, were impressed.
The reporters from the International Newspaper, who had been notified in advance by Eon, clutched their notepads and pens tightly with hands trembling with excitement.Just how much faster would the speed of information become once that technology was commercialized!
However, despite the astonishing scene, the attention of those who had come to the execution platform was still focused on Lunesica.
It was around the time the commotion caused by the emergence of unexpected new technology was subsiding.
Verden said.
The peace has collapsed.
In Gargant, where silence had settled so deep that one could hear the heartbeat of the person next to you, huge ripples rose in that vast and silent lake.Verden’s voice was transmitted to other continents via a communication device.
Verden emphasized it again.
“Peace has been stolen.”“…….”“The neighbors with whom we shared a table have become cold corpses, and only unfamiliar, empty traces remain in the place of our beloved family. Our daily lives have vanished. Even the graves where soulless bodies rest are no longer a sanctuary; our silence has become a silent tribute, and our screams have become last wills.”“……”“On this land that has lost its order, no one, and no life, is safe. The old king, the conqueror of the Xerion Empire who burned half the continent during the War of the Transcendents eight centuries ago, has returned.”
thud.
Verden placed the [Interis] he held in one hand on the execution platform, spreading a heavy resonance.
“And here. There is the servant of the old king.”
Countless eyes converged into one.
“Glory of the Corpse.”“…….”“The Second Servant, Lunesica Anternoa.”“…….”“The slaughterer of the First Transcendental War, the mastermind behind the Bloodcry Plague, the ringleader of the Sanctuary Massacre, the one who shattered the sacred seal and resurrected the Old King. The Transcendentalist of the Xerion Empire who has now caused the Second Transcendental War.”
Verden listed Lunesica’s sins.
“Lunesica Anternoa slaughtered our peace and plunged the world into war. Therefore, I, Verden of Eon, as a Transcendent and the Leader of the World Alliance, pronounce judgment on behalf of the will of all.”
No lengthy words are needed to amplify a small spark into an uncontrollable momentum.Only substantive proof is the answer.
Raging, vast magical power.
“That verdict is no different from that of the first servant I executed with my own hands, Draven Lemarque.”
thud!
The execution ground shook violently.
“Lunesica Anternoa, execution.”
The death of the transcendent being has been officially stated.
Although they already knew it, hearing it for the first time was an indescribable shock. People trembled with an overwhelming sense of dread, as if a massive rock had fallen into their hearts.
A gray storm swept across the execution grounds.A dark red glow flickered.
Fear, but do not yield.
Verden raised his voice and declared to everyone participating in the execution.
The ancient kings are bound to perish.
Madou
The lightning of destruction that fell from the eye of the storm settled in [Interis]. Kwa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa… …! The concept of absolute destruction manifested in Gargant.
The crowd, unable to maintain their balance in the aftermath, did not dare take their eyes off the screen.
The sense of relief overcame the fear.
Feeling firsthand just how powerful the World Alliance and the Transcendents were, and convinced that they would protect them, they eventually let out a shout without even realizing it.
Only then was the sound of someone hating Lunesica and wishing for her death also heard.
Rumble rumble… … .
The sound of echoing thunder.
A thunderbolt was aimed at Lunesica’s back. Verden was not a man who hesitated. Lunesica knew that very well.
We have moved forward endlessly for the past 800 years or so… … and now it is finally the beginning.
The plan to split the Xerion Empire began like this.
The moment Verden’s magic pierces Lunesica’s spirit and body, it will pretend to completely annihilate her soul and shatter it into a total of five pieces.Originally, it is a suicidal act with a success rate of less than 10% when performed alone, and it even severely damages one’s level, but she has a unique helper who can make it possible.
A new transcendent being of the Black Magic Realm who has inherited the magic of destiny pioneered by Draven and all of its mastery… … the Great King of Corpses, Verden.
I wonder what the team manager would have said in a situation like this.
Lunesica let out a deep breath and prepared to open the magic of the Spirit Realm.
‘Arkhand. Do you feel despair, too?’
Is it because we have walked the road together for too long?
Lunesica straightened her head, coincidentally recalling the same thought she had when Draven inherited the magic from Verden.
Silence is not to her taste.
Even if I die, I have no intention of dying just for nothing.For it is the death of Lunesica Anternoa herself, and no one else.
If light is good, act like evil until the very end.If you are a dark wizard, act like a dark wizard.
“How long will faith in the goddess last?”
Lunesica smirked as she insulted Luas of Light. It was a genuine, sincere sneer without a shred of falsehood.
Full of lies.
Lunesica cursed humanity for dreaming of heaven.
At the same time, Verden twisted the staff.
“Execution.”“The light cannot save you.”“Execution.”
Crunch crunch!
The spear of destruction pierced Lunesica’s living heart from behind. Unreasonable magical power burrowed deep inside. Gushing out blood, she snapped her head back.A dark red radiance shot out from her gaping eyes, mouth, nose, and ears.
Magic
In an instant, the moment the two magic paths crossed, a dazzling flash of light exploded.
Kyaaaaaaah───!
A death scream as sharp as a knife spread throughout the city.
Kwag
A pillar of dark red light surged up and struck the air. The sun vanished completely from view, and the city center was dyed in the same color. Itwas a scene of the end of the century, yet people saw order and hope in it.
“Wow…….”
Ignacia, who was watching from the rooftop of a high-rise building, let out a gasp of amazement.
“He really killed him properly. How scary. It looks like Verden was really determined.”
Because Ignacia could not feel a soul, she believed without a doubt in Lunesica’s eternal silence. Since death was inevitable now that the body and mind were gone, death was only natural.
but.
Reindel Nexreon, the Darkwarton Tower Master stationed next to Ignacia, did not detect any small death in Gargant.
He gazed at the sky, which was turbulent with destruction.
I could faintly see Lunesica’s soul, protected from destruction, soon tearing into five pieces and scattering in different directions.
“…….”
Reindel smiled silently.
Regardless of the truth, the execution of Lunesica Anternoa, carried out personally by Verden, was broadcast live to the international community without any distortion.
