Chapter 265. You Cannot Escape from the Saintess (5)
At first, I was too shocked to say anything, but when I thought about it, her possessing Evil Eyes was natural. Right, she was possessed by a powerful curse that no advancement in science or medicine, or the highest rank healing ability could cure. It wouldn’t make sense if it wasn’t caused by something like Evil Eyes.
“Is it really you, Hero-nim?”
“I told you multiple times. My name is Kang Shin.”
“You really are Hero-nim…!”
“I see not listening to other people’s words hasn’t changed.”
Even though this was the first time she spoke since she was born, the way she naturally moved her lips and tongue was a bit scary. She was really like a princess freed from a curse, the kind told in fairy tales.
She undoubtedly possessed Evil Eyes since the day she was born. Evil Eyes was a terrifying authority that placed an immense burden on one’s body. Back then, she should have had little to no mana in her body. Her body must have known that only death awaited her if she opened her eyes.
That’s why she couldn’t open her eyes. Because her sight wasn’t enough, her hearing and voice had also been taken away. It wasn’t a curse, but her desperate attempt to lessen the burden on her body. Of course, she never realized it.
I thought about explaining it, but I decided against it. I felt it would only encourage her self-aggrandizing way of thinking.
For some reason, however, Ciara was quiet. She could now see and speak. No matter how quiet she was before, it wouldn’t be an overreaction for her to blabber on excitedly. Plus, if it was Ciara who always put an exclamation mark at the end of her sentence…
“Ciara?”
“Yes! Yes!”
No, I was wrong. She had never seen the world with her own eyes. It made sense that she was spacing out.
Suddenly, Ciara, who was looking at me, began to cry. I had expected her to become emotional, but it was still a surprise as tears weren’t something I ever associated her with.
“Why are you crying? I told you I could fix it.”
“N-No. It’s nothing, Hero-nim…! It, it’s just…!”
Ciara didn’t wipe her tears and only looked up at me. She then murmured quietly.
“Even… Even more, far more beautiful than I thought…”
“… That’s good to hear.”
There was no way that the world she drew in her heart was the same as the world she saw with her own eyes. Now, she could see and judge everything herself. Even if it wasn’t to my extent… I hoped that she would come to recognize the value of others.
Feeling sympathy for Ciara for the first time, I reached out and stroked her hair. She didn’t overreact and simply smiled. If only she could continue being this way… I felt a headache knowing that this wouldn’t be the case.
Ciara regained her light and voice. In addition, her eyes were Evil Eyes from birth. Her power of foresight was simply the result of her inborn power awakening.
Her eyes could see the future. It was a simple ability, yet the consequences were immense. Just by opening her eyes, her ability came to surpass what it was before by far. If she put in an effort and controlled her eyes, there really might be nowhere that could escape her sight. Although she carried dangerous thoughts, as long as I was next to her, she would follow me. Revival had just gotten an irreplaceable ally.
However, Ciara’s situation wasn’t only good. As I said before, the reason she couldn’t speak and had her eyes closed was that her body couldn’t withstand her Evil Eyes. That was still the case now, even as an ability user.
Empowered by Enigma, the Elixir amplified the mana in her body and forced her body to its normal state. When the Elixir’s effect ran out, her body would be burdened once again, perhaps even more than before. It was my mistake, as I had never considered the possibility of her possessing Evil Eyes. But since she opened her eyes, it was necessary to train her body, mind, and mana. Immediately.
Hwaya answered my request with a dying expression.
“Hateful…”
“Please, Hwaya. I’ll do whatever you want.”
“You know full well I can’t refuse you… Huu, it’s for Revival too, so fine. I’ll endure it.”
“Thank you so much.”
Ciara bowed to Hwaya. She had clearly gotten calmer after opening her eyes. Hwaya snorted as she retorted.
“First, let’s work on controlling the mana inside you. Right now, it’s all tangled up inside.”
“It’s because she can’t control it consciously. Her potential shouldn’t be bad… She’s the distributor of all abilities after all.”
“I hope so, Shin. I’m going to be a little rough, so give us some space. Four days.”
“Four days!?”
What is she planning on doing to this child!? Don’t tell me she’s going to vent her anger? Hwaya snickered seeing my worrying eyes.
“What? I’m the first person on Earth to systematically train in mana. Since I accepted her as a disciple, I can’t be soft even if she’s a kid. I need four days, so leave.”
With that, Hwaya sent me a message.
[I can roughly solve what you’re worried about in that timeframe.]
“… You’re really an amazing woman.”
“Yeah, I know.”
Hwaya nodded as if it was the most obvious truth. Then, she waved her hands without even looking at me. I smiled and left as she wanted.
“Good luck, Ciara. I’ll take care of the rest.”
“Yes, Hero-nim. I’ll do my best! For Hero-nim!”
“No, do it for yourself, not me.”
Just like that, the witch accepted the saintess as a disciple at the request of the hero. What a mess.
After leaving Ciara to Hwaya, I went to find Walker. As I’d already talked to Hwaya and a few others, I didn’t need to hesitate to do what I planned.
“What’s up, Kang Shin? Your face is more unpleasant than usual.”
“Should I not?”
I messaged Walker beforehand, but it seemed he wasn’t in the dungeon anyway. With what happened last time with the Event Dungeons and the demons’ invasion, he was climbing the dungeon with determination, so it seemed my timing was good. When I visited him, Walker wasn’t in his house but was smoking outside.
It was noon. He would have been guarding Yua if it was the past. Although not much time had passed, I felt like many things had changed. I made a bitter smile. Walker flicked his cigarette and spoke curtly.
“If you’re going to visit me, tell me beforehand.”
“I did.”
“Three or four hours before.”
“… Do you have another guest?”
“… No.”
Walker dodged my gaze. For a moment, he eyes looked at the second-floor window. The curtains were tightly shut as if to hide what was inside. Well, it didn’t matter. I told him what I came for.
“You don’t really need the Soul Contract anymore.”
“You’ve gotten bold, Kang Shin.”
“I just think I should trust who I can trust.”
“You? Me? I woke up too late to see it, but the sun must have risen from the west.”
“Walker, I need your agreement to destroy it. The Soul Contract, let’s destroy it.”
Ignoring Walker’s drivel, I took out our Soul Contract and spoke with a clear voice. Walker widened his eyes and puffed a smoke. As he exhaled, he threw the cigarette away and nodded.
“Good, let’s destroy it.”
Without me doing anything, the Soul Contract ripped to shreds. I could feel that the contractual bond between Walker and me disappeared completely. At that moment, Walker appeared behind me. His fist was enveloped in a black aura.
“Just let me hit you once…!”
“Rejected.”
No matter how much Walker grew, he wasn’t my opponent. Because of how predictable he was, I couldn’t let him hit me even if I wanted. I lightly brushed his neck with my elbow. Walker fell backward and cursed.
“Damn you, you’re too uptight.”
“Thanks for the compliment.”
“Screw off. I’m going to go and let out all the curses I held back until now.”
“Yeah, you’re free to go.”
I smirked. As I was about to turn away, I realized I had something left to say.
“You’re the one who formed a Soul Contract with Sophie, right? Since the restriction is gone, you get rid of her contract too.”
“Got it.”
“I want to see her and say it myself, but since you’re outside, it must be troubling for her to meet someone at her current state.”
“Kuhuk!”
Walker coughed roughly. I smirked and dealt another blow.
“So, when can I eat my noodles? I love noodles, you know.”
“You son of a bitch…”
Walker gritted his teeth, while I walked out feeling better than ever before. I hummed happily.
It would be nice to take this happiness straight to Beyond’s 30th floor, but there was something I needed to do beforehand. It was the sparring with Peruta that came about once a month. Since sparring with him periodically let me realize how much I improved, I had no plans to take it easy.
I immediately went to the Residential Area and headed to the basement training room. Sumire was the only one there, thrusting her spear into the air by herself. I was slightly surprised.
“Sumire?”
“Ah, Shin-nim!”
She welcomed me with a smile. I already knew this with how close she was with Hwaya, but between a dog and a cat, she was more like a dog. If she had a tail, I suspected it would be shaking 100 times per second.
“Did you come to train?”
“Yep, with Peruta.”
“I’ll leave, so feel free! Afterwards, can you spar with me…?”
“Of course. You’re so hard-working, Sumire.”
“I’m just doing what I can. Even in the last incident, many people got hurt because I couldn’t protect them. I don’t want that to happen again.”
She was so blindingly bright that I couldn’t look at her. Shouldn’t Sumire be the Saintess instead of Ciara?
“Plus, Athena has a spear-related ability too. I just can’t use it because I’m not skilled enough. I have to obtain it before the next time Event Dungeons appear.”
“… Sorry for making you work so hard.”
“I know Shin-nim has it the hardest. I’m happy to just be of help!”
An angel!
“Ah, I took too much time. I’m off then. Call me when you’re done sparring!”
“No, Sumire. You can just watch from the side.”
“Huh? But…”
“It’s fine. You might learn something. Mmm, remember this though.”
I added with a wry smile.
“It’ll look like I’m dancing by myself.”
I stood in the center of the training hall with my eyes closed and called Peruta. He seemingly knew what I wanted, as he immediately created an Imagine World and faced me. A pleased smile was on his face.
“You’re heading to the next realm.”
“I want to arrive as quickly as possible. I have a lot to pay them back for.”
I held up my spear and took a stance. Peruta waved his hand as he retorted.
“My, impatience is a warrior’s taboo. Impatience leads to mistakes, and mistakes lead to losses. When a person becomes incapable of taking back what he lost, that’s when he becomes a Kahar.”
“I’ll take note. Though, I don’t know what a Kahar is.”
“Whoop, my bad. Kahar means disaster in my continent’s language. The kind of disaster that stays hidden, appearing suddenly and devouring everything. When a person becomes a Kahar, there will be nothing left, including himself. In the end, he’ll destroy even the things he wanted to protect.”
To be honest, it sounded cool.
“I’ll remember that.”
“Then remember this too. In another language, a Kahar is called the God of Vengeance.”
Peruta held up his spear, pointing it towards me and shouting sharply.
“Now, come! Throw away your impatience and thirst for revenge! For now, only think about reaching the peak of spearmanship!”
“Of course!”
Ten hours afterward.
My Mad Typhoon reached level 7.