Chapter 196
As soon as the chains fell away, Altear took a cautious step back from me.
Then, with her usual faint smile, she declared:
“It’s too late, Crow. The Zadkiel you seek to kill has been dead for quite some time now.”
That was the announcement of Zadkiel’s death.
From the faint curve of her eyes, I could read both compassion and mockery simultaneously.
“… What? What do you mean?”
Out of bewilderment, I let out a hollow laugh and asked.
I defiantly held out the uppermost bloom of safflower to her. Altear’s brow darkened.
Seeing her reaction, I teased her:
“Did you already forget why you were gathering this? Are you getting senile?”
And what is this about ‘Black Blood Disease’?
As if on cue with Zadkiel’s appearance, the disease began spreading from the Valley of the Dead. Isn’t it obvious that the disease is due to Zadkiel?
Not only did the common rumors spread, but the Unterland government officially acknowledged it. Even Adrang, the witch hunter, believed it and had mentioned it to me.
“Was the saint caring for the sick at the cathedral during the day actually her illegitimate twin brother?”
This disease is still rampant and has now spread to the distant Gaisers region. That’s undeniable proof that Zadkiel is still alive.
When I glared at her with intensity, Altear faintly smiled.
“Hmph.”
It was a laugh that expressed utmost mockery.
A fleeting wistful expression then crossed her eyes.
“Crow. I don’t know how you uncovered my true nature, but that’s fine. Yes, I have lived for almost five hundred years. During all this time, I’ve been deceived and exploited by countless people.”
This time, it was my turn to furrow my brows, unsure of where her words were headed.
However, I soon understood.
“That’s why I don’t trust others. I don’t believe in rumors or hearsay either. I only believe in what I see with my own eyes.”
Her crimson eyes and cherry-like lips conveyed that she’d personally witnessed the murder of Zadkiel — or rather, Zadkiel’s lifeless body. That’s what she was telling me now.
“Are you curious? The truth I witnessed at the edges of the Valley of the Dead.”
The dynamics of the conversation had shifted; Altear was now leading it.
Ignoring my response, she slowly walked deeper into the cave, her faint, almost breaking voice echoing in the darkness like a tempting whisper.
“If you’re interested, I can lead you. If you’re prepared to face the truth… then follow.”
While curiosity was gnawing at me, I physically hurried to keep up with Altear as she moved further away.
I didn’t want to lose the upper hand. Quickly moving to stand beside her, I tried to sound as intimidating as possible:
“Saint, if you pull any tricks, I’ll make good on my promise from earlier to turn the three of you from the Valley of the Dead into a Big Mac triple and devour it.”
“To believe or not, that’s up to you. I won’t force anyone to trust me, as I myself don’t trust easily.”
My attempt at intimidation fell flat, completely ineffective.
Not only did it fail, but Altear, with a tired glance, looked at me and then dramatically spread her arms before me, standing motionless.
“If you doubt me, then strike me down, Crow. It seems you’ve become a monster more accustomed to this than conversation.”
That piercing, mocking crimson gaze forced me to quickly avert my eyes.
Her glare felt as if it penetrated beyond my skin and into my very soul. I felt humiliated, knowing I had been so easily dismissed.
“… So, is it because you’re a 500-year-old grandmother that you don’t get jokes?”
“To joke about a lady’s age like that… That’s the worst, Crow.”
“Eh.”
We exchanged mutual disdain for each other with one curt remark.
I subtly nodded my chin as a signal to continue. Altear understood perfectly and slowly continued to walk deeper into the cave.
“Hmph.”
I spat out an unnecessary scoff and silently followed behind her.
The plot seemed to be unfolding as I’d hoped, but I couldn’t help the creeping sense that something unexpected and overwhelming was right around the corner.
*
“The fields of safflower are increasing.”
Altear muttered as she walked ahead.
There was no need to respond to her internal monologue, but after trudging through the endless darkness filled with nothing but flowers for 10 minutes, 20, then 30 minutes, the boredom reached its peak.
Finally, kicking at the blooming safflowers, I muttered:
“Flowers in a cave, huh? What on earth are they feeding off?”
Caves should normally support life only in the form of mosses, since photosynthesis can’t happen here. Even someone as uneducated as a laborer knows that much.
Altear didn’t seem startled by my sudden question, instead responding with a softened tone:
“The streams of the valley and the flow of the earth’s veins carry Zadkiel’s blood. This flower feeds off the black mana that springs from it.”
“Blood…?”
I recalled the viscous, murky bluish-purple color of the valley water and glanced again at the surrounding expanse of blue safflowers.
On second thought, the petals’ color did seem reminiscent of the river’s hue. It left me rather queasy.
“The abundance of these flowers means that this is a place where Zadkiel’s blood and mana pool in large quantities. It seems to be a direct route to the depths of the valley. Not even I knew such a place existed.”
Altear marveled aloud, glancing around the cave.
I stood still until then, and then, throwing away the broken remains of a safflower I’d been holding, interjected:
“But sister, why does a flower that grew from Zadkiel’s blood inhibit the Black Blood Disease?”
The matter still didn’t make sense to me.
If Zadkiel was already dead, it stands to reason that he didn’t cause the plague.
‘Alright. That’s plausible.’
The next reasonable hypothesis was that the disease could be the result of toxin from the decay of Zadkiel’s corpse, or in a more magical sense, the spread through some enchantment lingering from his remains.
After all, the corpse of Astarte was known to continually summon monsters within a cave. So, the notion wasn’t entirely unfounded.
“Are you truly saying… that the Black Blood Disease has absolutely nothing to do with Zadkiel?”
No, that wasn’t the case.
Rather, the claim was that the antidotes for the Black Blood Disease grew from Zadkiel’s blood.
For the past six months, I had firmly believed that Zadkiel was the cause of the Black Blood Disease. This revelation was not just shocking but also dismaying.
‘That means even if Zadkiel dies…’
It implied that the Black Blood Disease wouldn’t end. After all, Zadkiel had no connection to the disease from the beginning.
I recalled the slumped back of Jack and the contorted form of Aldcon. My mouth felt dry, like I had swallowed sand.
“Crow. There’s something I’d rather ask you.”
Altear cast a quick glance at me as she continued walking.
Her piercing gaze returned, and without realizing it, my body tensed.
“Considering that you’ve managed to reach this far, you’ve probably already eliminated Astarte and even defeated Hector. So, you must have some understanding of the nature of this twisted world?”
“… I know enough.”
“In that case, don’t you already get it? The Four Demon Kings created by the young witch are different from ordinary Demon Kings.”
Altear referred to the witch Diana as ‘the young witch’ without hesitation.
It was a term filled with affection and nostalgia, rekindling my awareness of her mysterious identity, thus tightening the tension in my shoulders.
Altear continued calmly:
“Originally, they don’t indiscriminately pursue destruction like other dull Demon Kings. In fact, they were created with the intention of suppressing such chaos. The Four Demon Kings have never intentionally harmed the world.”
“Hmm.”
Listening to Altear’s words, I was lost in thought and could not help but nod.
‘Indeed.’
Luci had been brainwashed by Hector Cassas and, thanks to the army of immortals under the Elderitch, had become the most feared Demon King in the world.
Furthermore, the true damage Astarte caused to the world came from the incomplete fragments and monsters summoned from her partially decayed corpse when called upon by the Resurrection Sect, not from her core being itself. Originally, Astarte’s main form was not even something that could move on its own, and it wasn’t clear whether it ever had been alive.
“Is Zadkiel and the Shakiel who resides in Dragon Empire also of the same kind?”
I hadn’t heard any rumors regarding Shakiel, but after considering what I knew about Luci and Astarte, it made some sense that Zadkiel could indeed be a Demon King with a good side.
“Yes. That’s exactly it.”
Altear smiled mysteriously and continued forward.
At that moment, the darkness where not even a foot could be seen ahead came to an end, and the endless field of blooming safflower flowers vanished suddenly, as if it were all a mirage.
Looking up, starlight poured in like cascading night sky.
‘It’s outside.’
We had finally exited the cave that had been hidden until now.
“This way feels familiar. We must be almost at the end.”
A narrow path encircled by steep cliffs continued.
Following the flow of a thick, deep-blue river, we climbed up the embankment. In Altear’s eyes, her crimson pupils flickered.
It was impossible to imagine she had just smiled a moment ago. Her gaze was razor-sharp and piercing.
“Both Rustica Asmodeus and Astarte shared commonalities.”
Altear murmured, continuing the conversation from the cave.
I averted my gaze from the sky and slowly met her penetrating stare.
“Both cases resulted from someone’s selfishness. The pure intentions of Diana were sullied, and the fragments meant for salvation were transformed into agents of massacre. This is where they started slaughtering the powerless.”
‘Huh—.’ The wind that blew past was unseasonably chilling for summer.
Altear finally stopped walking. Quietly observing some distant point, I shifted my gaze slightly from her side.
“Zadkiel… She’s in the same situation, Crow.”
Her dry voice rang in my ears.
My gaze rested on a giant cocoon hanging from a withered, twisted ancient tree at the edge of the valley.
“That’s…”
It was a moth’s cocoon: a half-decayed, pale-green cocoon.
The side, tightly wrapped in sticky thread, had been roughly torn open, and through that hole, a human-like figure was half-emerging lifelessly.
I cautiously voiced its identity.
“… Zadkiel.”
This time, the hair was white like Luci’s, but the form was far closer to monstrous than Astarte’s had been.
Instead of horns, an insect-like antenna protruded from the forehead, and there was a single crimson eye embedded in the center of her brow. Dead due to decay, its pupil was flipped backwards.
‘This is certainly insect-like.’
Wings similar to a moth’s rather than a bat’s.
She had no tail, but instead an additional pair of arms grew at the waist, resembling the limbs of an insect.
‘This is terrifying.’
But the terror wasn’t about Zadkiel’s appearance; it referred to her situation.
Even now, around the cocoon, a torrent of red blood was gushing out. It was like a crimson waterfall.
Thanks to it, the deepest depths of the valley were drenched in thick blood around that massive tree.
The splattered blood combined grotesquely with Zadkiel’s contorted form, creating the impression of a dark and depressing piece of art.
“As I’ve said. The ones responsible for Zadkiel’s current state were the upper-tier heroes of Unterland.”
I had been captivated by the eerie scene, but snapped back to reality at Altear’s quiet voice.
Altear took one step closer to me with a purpose.
“Haven’t you noticed yet? Why the rumor spread that Zadkiel was the cause of the Black Blood Disease?”
“Isn’t it because the times of her appearance and the outbreak of the disease coincided…?”
“No. They don’t.”
Altear firmly shook her head.
Of course, I frowned and tilted my head in confusion.
“It’s the same time, 25 years ago. How on earth isn’t it coincident?”
“That’s the deception of the heroes who killed Zadkiel. Zadkiel was summoned 30 years ago.”
“… !!”
“Though there’s no evidence, if you truly seek the truth, believe me. As I’ve stated, I believe only what I have personally witnessed. Crow.”
Her voice carried a tone of resignation.
That voice, right now, was shattering my false beliefs built upon lies.
‘Her words…’
I believed them. I was able to believe.
I could sense her frustration. There’s a particular aura when one utters the truth too unbelievable to be believed.
That’s usually my specialty. The similarity made it impossible to ignore.
“That rumor was spread by the heroes themselves who killed Zadkiel. The government of Unterland also agreed, which is why it is now commonly accepted as fact.”
“Why did they need to go that far?”
“They needed a justification. They needed a justification to build the ark that would help free themselves from this world of suffering and prepare against the upcoming great calamity.”
An ark to break free from a suffering-filled world.
Around 25 years ago, this coincided with the beginning of the design of the floating fortress Leviathan.
I exhaled a gasp of realization.
“The increasingly frequent appearance of demon kings.”
“Combined with the chaos caused by the emergence of the Fourth Demon King Zadkiel and the outbreak of the plague.”
“The desperate citizens sought out salvation more fervently and pursued powerful forces to protect them.”
“Exactly. Now I understand.”
A powerful floating fortress capable of perhaps even resisting someone as formidable as the infamous Four Demon Kings.
If the situation wasn’t dire enough for the underclass to willingly sacrifice themselves, such a massive machine would never have been able to take to the skies.
“Hmpf. Yes. Justification. That’s important.”
I understood.
What? How much more beastly can a black-haired beast get?
“Do you still have questions, Crow?”
Altear suddenly spoke up behind me where she’d been quietly standing.
Turning quickly, I saw her crimson eyes glowing through the dusk of the night, fixed on me.
“The reason I guard to prevent those who seek hope from facing this despair-inducing truth, and why I regret having saved such a wretched world.”
Her crimson pupil burned silently with rage, her face streaked with tears.
“Is it still insufficient?”
The tears looked like blood.
