Chapter 135 : Chapter 135

Chapter 135: In the Name of Father (2)

* * *

“Did you hear that?!”

Linda whipped her head around.

The sound came from nearby, but the problem was the path splitting into three ahead.

“Oh no, what do we do! What do we do!”

“Miss Linda, please calm down. We can’t rush forward recklessly!”

“Calm down? How am I supposed to calm down?”

Linda stomped her feet.

She’d seen Bihen dive after Roberto and immediately sought another path, rushing downward.

“Miss! Behind, behind…!”

Karim’s eyes widened as he shouted.

A beast had crept up behind Linda, its grotesque maw gaping wide.

Thwack!

Linda swung her sword without looking.

The beast’s head, sparsely covered with hair like a human’s, dropped with a thud.

“Ha, I thought my heart would stop.”

Karim burned the beast’s corpse, letting out a long sigh.

Unfazed, Linda agonized over which of the three paths to take.

Her mind was consumed with thoughts of Bihen.

She’d hacked through beasts to get here, too frantic to care about nausea or fear.

“I’ve decided.”

Linda narrowed her eyes.

She pointed at the middle passage.

“That way! Let’s go!”

“Miss, the mine’s structure changed after the collapse. If we keep going blindly…”

“Keep going and what? Just sit here with our hands tied?”

“Please listen. We should retreat and regroup…”

“Don’t be stupid! Lives hang in the balance in a split second! Even I know that and you should too. Aren’t you a physician?”

Karim was speechless.

Another tremor, accompanied by a loud rumble, shook the area.

Startled, Linda turned to move, unable to delay any longer.

Grab.

Karim seized her wrist.

He pointed to the rightmost passage.

“I think it’s that way. Let’s go.”

“…Really? Can I trust you?”

“I’m confident my instincts are as good as anyone’s.”

Linda and Karim hurried forward.

As they passed through the passage, their view suddenly opened up.

Both stopped in their tracks.

“This place…”

It was completely different.

The ceiling soared high, and the space was vast, with stone structures scattered under the dark green toxic mist, as if carved by someone.

“What are those?”

Linda took a tentative step, her gaze fixed ahead.

“They look like… altars.”

Karim’s voice trembled slightly, overwhelmed by the eerie atmosphere.

Atop a tiered altar sat a massive, unidentifiable stone.

“Why is something like this in a mine?”

Linda muttered, scanning the area.

Faint, ancient symbols and patterns lingered on the walls.

“They seem like traces of some ritual.”

“…Ritual?”

“Yes. Like offerings were made or a seal was performed.”

Linda’s brow furrowed.

Whether Karim’s words were true or not, the place felt ominous.

It exuded the aura of an unholy underground temple.

Then it happened.

A vibration rose from the ground.

Rumble-rumble-rumble.

A heavy tremor climbed through the earth.

Their vision shook violently.

As Linda staggered, Karim quickly grabbed her arm.

“Miss!”

The shaking intensified.

The ground writhed, and dust slid down the stone walls.

Standing steady was nearly impossible.

At that moment, cracks formed on the strange stone atop the altar.

Fissures spread like a spiderweb, and fragments burst outward.

Crack—!

With a sharp rupture, the stone shattered.

As Linda turned toward it, her eyes widened, a gasp escaping.

“What… what is that…?”

Her face twisted in horror and fear.

The tremors ceased.

As her vision steadied, the form became clear.

“Ha…!”

Linda’s legs buckled and she swayed.

In the center of the shattered stone, a beast sat cross-legged.

It was the corpse of a beast, more grotesque in death than in life.

Its blackened, decayed skin, dry as moldy soil, cracked and split, leaking an ancient stench.

How dare a mere beast…!

It went beyond mimicking humans—its death itself resembled a human’s.

Its posture, legs neatly crossed, was almost reverent.

Linda shuddered.

A wave of guilt swept through her.

She couldn’t comprehend what she was facing.

The dead beast sat as if it had reached nirvana at the end of meditation.

Clang!

Linda drew her sword.

The mere sight felt like it was eroding her mind.

She kicked off the ground.

Her form shot toward the altar.

Her instincts screamed to destroy the grotesque figure.

“Miss! No—!”

Karim’s cry faded behind her.

…!

In that instant, she saw it.

A glint flashed in the beast’s dark eye sockets.

It felt like their eyes met.

When her senses returned, nothing had changed.

Realizing it was a hallucination, green flames erupted from the ground.

Boom—boom—boom—boom—boom!

“Kyaa—!”

“Miss…!”

Linda’s body was caught in the shockwave, flung into the air, and crashed down.

She narrowly avoided the flames but tumbled across the ground.

“Miss! Are you okay!”

“Ugh, this is nothing…”

“We need to get out! If we provoke it further…”

“…What?”

Linda looked up at Karim.

Something about his words felt off.

Humm—humm—

A strange vibration drew her gaze forward.

In the center of the beast’s grotesque chest, something green pulsed slowly but clearly.

Horror filled Linda’s widened eyes.

“A… heart…?”

The words slipped out unconsciously.

There was no other way to describe it.

Humm—humm—

The pulsing was steady, like a living heart.

The rhythm echoed in her ears, shifting from a tremor to a whisper.

Linda’s mind grew hazy.

Her thoughts clouded, and her fingertips felt distant.

As her eyelids began to roll back, Karim placed his hand on her crown.

Sssss.

A warm sensation flowed down, and Linda’s eyes snapped open.

Regaining focus, she gasped as if surfacing from water.

“Gah, hah, hah!”

“Are you okay?!”

Linda barely steadied her breathing.

It felt like she’d fainted and woken up.

“What… what is that thing!”

“We can’t stay here. We need to leave!”

Humm—humm—

The heart’s pulsing grew louder.

In sync, stone fragments crumbled from the walls.

The entire area began to shake again.

Rumble—!

As if signaled, dark shadows flooded in.

Dozens of green-glowing eyes lit up.

The toxic mist thickened.

“This…!”

The sudden beast horde blocked their escape, surrounding them instantly.

“We’re trapped, damn it.”

“We have to break through. Focus on one spot.”

Despite their words, neither could move easily.

They didn’t even know where to break through.

The number of beasts was incomparable to before.

Kiing—!

A chilling screech, like blades scraping, pierced their ears.

It came from beyond the beast horde ahead.

The sound preceded the phenomenon.

Swoosh!

A flash of light split the beast pack and two afterimages appeared before Linda and Karim.

Screams and tearing flesh followed the afterimages’ path.

Leaving the beasts’ torn bodies behind… The afterimages took form.

It was Bihen, Heavenly Demon in one hand, Roberto slung over the other.

* * *

As I transformed, I turned my head.

Humm—humm—

A glowing green mass pulsed, my pupils contracting and dilating with each beat.

What is that…

It was practically labeled as the Mana Core.

Click.

I turned, gripping Heavenly Demon tightly.

“Sir Bihen! Don’t approach it recklessly! The poison’s different!”

The voice came from behind—Karim.

He was kneeling, tending to Roberto’s ankle with a splint.

His hands moved quickly, but his gaze on me was urgent.

“Different poison? What do you mean?”

“It’s not just physical—it’s a curse that invades the mind! If you rush in, your soul could be consumed!”

My head turned back.

The green heart beating in the beast’s corpse drew my gaze.

I swallowed hard.

An old memory stirred.

…Human Gu.

I’d heard of it.

A poison crafted from humans—a sorcery lost centuries ago.

It was like…

Blood Magic.

My grip on Heavenly Demon tightened.

A smirk crept onto my face.

Poison Demon.

I didn’t expect to find it here.

“Linda, can you hold them off for a bit?”

“What? Hold them off?”

“Trust me.”

“Sir Bihen? What are you…”

Before Linda could finish, the beast horde charged.

“Stay back!”

Karim leapt up, swinging his arm.

Flames erupted from the ground, forming a wall between us and the beasts.

“Ha…! These beasts fear fire, so this should buy us time. Let’s plan our next move.”

Karim’s legs trembled as if he might collapse.

As he said, the beasts didn’t cross the flames.

Clang!

Roberto stabbed his Bastard Sword into the ground, using it as a cane to stand.

He let out a deep sigh.

“This won’t be enough.”

“What do you mean…?”

“The mine’s beasts have evolved, gaining higher intelligence. They’ll find a way soon.”

Roberto raised his Bastard Sword beside his face.

His fierce gaze locked on the beasts beyond the flames.

“Sir Bihen! Your orders!”

His spirit was overwhelming.

His back seemed to declare he wouldn’t yield an inch.

In the name of my father.

Gurgle, gurgle.

While I secretly admired him, a reaction came from across.

The soft-bodied Moldnak horde writhed toward the flames.

Their slimy bodies piled up, and with a sizzlesmoke rose.

“My god…!”

All three gasped.

I doubted my eyes.

The beasts were sacrificing themselves to pave a path for their kin.

The flames flickered and died in spots.

Beasts roared, charging through.

Eyeballs popped out from the crushed Moldnak bodies with sickening sounds.

“Sir Bihen! Leave it to me!”

Linda stepped forward.

She remembered my request to hold them off.

She cut down the beasts pouring through the flames’ gaps.

It reminded me of defending the Spirit Tree in Sylphiroa.

Back then, Kevin had left gaps in the barrier to lure Mist Fang Wolves, thinning their numbers gradually.

It was better than facing them all at once.

Of course, I wouldn’t have done it if I’d known they’d keep coming endlessly.

That fight dragged on until Kendrick’s quick thinking ended it.

This time is different.

This time, I know how to end it.

A way only I know.

Swish.

I turned, staring at the green heart on the altar.

Ghost Eye.

My vision shifted instantly.

The formless, hazy currents became visible as threads.

The true form of the toxic mist, invisible to the naked eye.

Between me and the beast corpse with the green heart.

Countless fine lines wove a curtain across the space.

…

The sight alone was revolting.

Intricate as a spiderweb, fine as mist, and overwhelmingly vast.

The poison, thought to be intangible, filled the space heavier than reality.

Step.

I stepped toward it.

The transparent threads, drifting slowly, swarmed my body as if waiting.

I felt like prey caught in a web.

As my breath caught, a heavy pressure gripped my limbs.

“Sir Bihen—!”

My companions’ cries grew distant.

All senses and consciousness began to close inward.

I sank into complete silence.

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“…What is all this, Young Master?”

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