[Completed Main Quest]
[ ! Unreadable Characters Due to Encoding Issue ]
Aslan disregarded the message indicating the completion of an unknown quest and began to ponder.
The scenes that had appeared when the consciousness of That Being flowed in a moment ago were impossible to ignore. The information was too blatant to be ignored, and yet it was so blatant that its purpose remained unclear.
It was uncertain whether Aslan alone had witnessed it or if others had as well.
If others had seen it too, many things would change; but if only Aslan had seen it, the situation was a complete mystery. Aslan agonized over invisible clues and answers.
Moreover, the scenery that had been shown was… strangely familiar.
Familiar to the point of being typical.
A city from the Western world—though Aslan had never visited, it was a common sight in movies and games.
There was a futuristic space city, typical of space operas, and a colossal tree that was unmistakably the World Tree from classic fantasy.
Then there was also a religious city that felt both strange and familiar in style, alongside a landscape reminiscent of the Buddhist depiction of hell.
A city where decay and technology coexisted was emblematic of near-future settings.
Aslan recalled all these landscapes. Why Geladridion had appeared last was incomprehensible to him.
“Why are you showing me this?”
Aslan could not guess. The information was too vague.
Without any visible connections to help deduce the situation, having more information didn’t provide any practical use.
But one thing was clear:
That Being was unrelated to Aslan.
It wasn’t That Being who dropped Aslan into Geladridion.
For 12 years, Aslan lived in Geladridion, and the entity that brought Aslan there had observed him for 12 years without revealing its identity.
For 12 years, it watched covertly without being discovered.
It followed every moment. Aslan remembered how during his brief time at the Sanctuary of Sorrow, when the surveillance momentarily ceased, ‘That Being’ had piled up corpses in the corridor.
Rather than feeling ominous, Aslan sensed an unnatural effort to hide itself.
Compulsively concealing traces and hiding its true nature, would such an entity now release explicit information that could reveal its identity? Aslan thought it unlikely.
Recalling the ancient deity’s warning that it would act when the situation flips, Aslan concluded that ‘That Being’ wouldn’t directly overturn the situation.
Clearly, it was enjoying Aslan’s predicament.
The cautious entity that had concealed itself for 12 years wasn’t behind this. While its purpose was still unclear, it wouldn’t expose itself so easily.
So, the question arises:
What exactly is That Being?
Aslan couldn’t articulate what That Being was.
It was definitely a deity, but what kind of deity? What did it do?
Why specifically Cardi?
How did it know about the various worlds?
“Could it possibly… be a new deity?”
Aslan fell into Geladridion on the official launch day of Eternal Dominion.
Recalling that memory, Aslan let out a low murmur.
“It’s possible.”
Until then, Eternal Dominion had been available for early access, allowing players to play before the official release for a fee. On the official release day, Aslan hadn’t managed to try it out.
When he started a new game with the newly added Realism difficulty mode—known to be the hardest—and combined it with the Ironman mode, which allowed only one save slot, the game crashed, spewing errors.
Afterward, Lee Hyun-woo simply turned off the game and went out with friends to chat about their college entrance exam studies. While walking, he slipped on a pedestrian path.
The railing where he slipped was old and unrepaired, causing Lee Hyun-woo to fall and become Aslan.
Considering all this, the possibility of a new deity seemed quite plausible.
If it was new content added to the official game, it wouldn’t be unreasonable.
Just that Aslan couldn’t confirm it.
While contemplating various possibilities, Aslan stopped when the burning pain in his shoulder intensified.
“Hmm.”
Aslan winced, gripping his shoulder. He ran his hand over the spot where his missing right arm used to be and glanced around. There was still one Equalization scroll left in his tool pouch.
“Should I use it?”
The Equalization scroll, a simple piece of parchment imbued with mana, could regenerate his arm by sapping a little strength from his entire body if used.
“No, not now.”
The problem was there.
Aslan had lost quite a bit of stamina.
In a game, his HP wouldn’t be very high.
Using Equalization in this state would likely leave him unable to endure due to lack of stamina.
He needed to hold off on using Equalization until his stamina recovered.
“For now, I’ll have to manage as a one-armed man.”
Thinking about how inconvenient it would be, especially since it was his right arm, Aslan put the Equalization scroll back into his tool pouch.
“My combat ability will drop significantly, but with allies, I should be fine.”
Both Angie and Ereta were there. Even if it wasn’t combat-related, asking for some help would make things relatively manageable.
With that thought, Aslan grabbed the nearly broken rope ladder and climbed up.
Climbing with one arm was difficult, but driven by strong determination, Aslan returned to the ground where the pillar once stood without uttering a single cry of pain.
“Aah.”
“Oh, Aslan! You made it!”
When Aslan climbed up and reached the ground, his traveling party, who had been watching the collapsing pillar, approached him.
“You don’t look… entirely alright.”
Approaching, Angie noticed Aslan’s destroyed shoulder and frowned after initially smiling mischievously.
“What happened? Did you lose another arm? Your ear seems fine again, though. And your face.”
“My face is fortunate.”
Unlike Ereta who subtly revealed her concern, Angie pointed at Aslan’s completely burned-off shoulder and asked worriedly.
Aslan chuckled awkwardly at her concern.
“It’s nothing serious. Just something that happens in fights…”
“There’s no way it’s nothing! I may be dumb, but I’m not that dumb to miss a swapped arm. Besides, losing an arm isn’t like scraping a knee.”
The girl’s expression darkened as she scolded him. Aslan smiled awkwardly and replied.
“I just wanted to make sure, that’s all.”
While saying this, Aslan recalled the words of his teacher.
In the midst of those thoughts, the girl spoke.
“Use your body and mind as much as you can. Remember, you…”
“Who uses their arms like that? Really.”
Worried, Angie shot Aslan a frowning glance.
The emotions deeply embedded in that gaze weren’t hard to understand, especially since Angie was straightforward.
“I understand. If giving up an arm means an easy resolution, then it’s worth it, right?”
On the other hand, Ereta, seemingly less worried, hugged Aslan upon approaching. Perhaps realizing she couldn’t untangle herself in time due to the missing shoulder, she hugged him from the front and pressed her face against his chest.
“You’re sympathizing with him like some stray dog.”
“That’s because you don’t understand.”
Ereta lifted her face buried in his chest. Her pink eyes carried deep emotion, making Aslan slightly uncomfortable as he turned away and looked at Angie.
“Not understanding what? My arm is the one that’s broken, remember?”
Indeed, Angie’s arm was broken. Clearly fractured at the elbow, Aslan exclaimed and opened the system window.
He clicked on Angela Tail’s panel and tapped Health three times with his finger.
Each tap made Angie shiver.
[Angela Tail]
[Strength 7] [Agility 4] [Health 10]
[Mana ■] [Spirit ■] [Luck ■]
Through the floating stats window, Angie asked.
“Is it that healing magic again?”
“Yeah, your arm was broken, so I made it heal quickly.”
“…Hmm, feels like it.”
Smiling in gratitude, Angie returned the smile to Aslan, while Ereta watching them said,
“Why don’t you thank me?”
“What for?”
“I protected you. Hard. Got my belly slashed. Lost a lot of blood?”
“You’re becoming a troublemaker now. Stop thinking about thanks.”
Ereta smirked and pressed her cheek against Aslan’s chest, prompting Angie to snicker.
“Troublemaker? I’m the one whose arm is broken, remember?”
Ereta blinked her large eyes and asked innocently.
“Troublemaker? What did I do?”
“You hit me with axes, knees, and fists. Don’t think I’ll forget. This Angie here doesn’t forget favors.”
Aslan chuckled lightly, and Ereta looked bewildered.
“You’ve been acting shameless lately, and I’ve been debating whether to forgive you, but since you fought well this time, I’ll classify you as a troublemaker.”
“Ugh… Okay. Let’s go with that.”
Though Ereta answered indifferently, Angie proudly placed her hands on her hips.
When Ereta finally lifted her face from Aslan’s chest, her complexion was pale.
“Ugh, my stomach hurts.”
At this, Aslan glanced down briefly. Meeting his gaze, Ereta smiled faintly but frowned when she realized Aslan was looking not at her face but at the torn part of her habit.
“Definitely looks like a pretty bad wound.”
“Let’s call it a day and rest well. I’ll ask the Duke for a good place to stay…”
Looking at Ereta’s condition, Aslan saw that she wasn’t in great shape.
Her skin, originally pale, was even paler now, and the gash on her abdomen wasn’t a minor injury.
Since Aslan himself didn’t have enough stamina to use Equalization, it would be best to follow Ereta’s suggestion and rest thoroughly.
“No, we’re leaving Cardi.”
“…Huh?”
“Eh?”
They couldn’t stay in Cardi.
Perhaps the next main quest might pop up soon.
If the next main quest came immediately, Aslan wouldn’t have a way to respond.
Thus, it was better to leave. That option introduced fewer variables.
“What about your wounds? They seem pretty serious…”
“My wounds can be healed with Equalization once my stamina recovers, and Angie will recover quickly. As for yours…”
Aslan glanced at Ereta’s abdomen. The smooth surface bore a slash mark, but stitching it shouldn’t be too difficult.
Given the softness he felt from hugging her, treating Ereta, now human, didn’t seem overly challenging.
“If you were a priest, maybe the skin would embrace the needle and regenerate mid-stitch or something.”
In that sense, being human now made treatment easier.
“I’ll stitch you up.”
“Wow, you know how to do that?”
“Somewhat.”
Ereta sniffed and narrowed her eyes, lightly rubbing her bandaged abdomen. A trace of blood smeared her white fingers as they slid over the smooth skin.
“Will it hurt?”
“…A little?”
Ereta stepped back from Aslan, her half-closed eyes carrying subtle anticipation, and Aslan sighed inwardly at the emotions she harbored.
Of course.
Expecting pain seemed absurd.
Kurrrr!
At that moment, the pillar collapsed completely, and the wall that had been blocking one side of the warehouse crumbled, revealing a clear gap leading outside.
“Perfect timing. Let’s escape through here. I’ll treat you once we’re out.”
“Okay.”
“Hey, wait. Speaking of which, what about payment?”
Just as Aslan and Ereta were about to leave, Angie asked. Aslan turned to meet her gaze and smiled slightly.
“The deposit we received is enough. I consider capturing this priest under full support as payment. Next time, I’ll probably catch them even easier.”
Saying this, Aslan smirked.
Seeming to accept Aslan’s reasoning, Angie shrugged without much complaint.
“Let’s go before we get involved in any more trouble.”
Prompted by Aslan, the group left immediately.
They departed from Cardi less than an hour later.
By the time the Duke sought them, they were already gone.
