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101. Beggar Siblings – Tattoo

[ You have died. 3/4 ]

[ Achievement: Third Death – The speed at which the player merges with Leo decreases. ]

‘This is ridiculous.’

As Leo died and vanished, Minseo stepped into the spotlight. Having turned into a round orb, he lost focus in the darkness, staring vacantly.

The bloodied Leo had disappeared far away.

Almost there. The situation was hardly different from a guaranteed win. However,

‘This is just impossible.’

He failed. Miserably.

Minseo’s mind went blank.

‘How on earth… how am I supposed to break this?’

After enduring various hardships and reaching level 30, entering the boss battle was akin to facing a level 3000 boss sitting there.

It’s overwhelming. No, it’s beyond overwhelming; it feels suffocating.

This brutal game mocked him, extinguishing even a glimpse of hope. Leo, who was following the {Bloodline} event, was gruesomely killed, and Lena…

‘Oh no! Lena! Please!’

Minseo read the floated ending nervously in the air.

[ Thank you for playing Lena’s Journey. ]

[ Lena Yeriel ]

[ Final Job: Duchess Yeriel ]

[ Marriage Partner: Engaged to Vivian de Isadora ]

[ Leo de Yeriel ]

[ Final Job: Unemployed ]

[ Beggar Siblings Ending: Fallen Royal Family ]

– Born in Rutina Castle, Lena… (excerpt) …Lena waited in her room for three days. Unable to endure her thirst, she went outside and was caught by a thug, but was saved by Alvin’s help. Later, Lena, with the help of Alvin and a few knights, attempted to regain her position as princess. However, fearing the revenge of Cardinal Berg, who defeated the evil god-corrupted Prince Eric, the nobles opposed her claim to the throne. When the king passed away, the Conrad Kingdom was renamed Grania Holy Kingdom by Cardinal Berg. Lena inherited part of the Yeriel family’s wealth and became Countess Yeriel. She declared war on the Tertan Duke’s family, which had lost its strength after losing its leader, and merged the dukedom to ascend to the title of Duke Yeriel. To regain the throne, Lena was politically engaged to the First Prince of Aisel Kingdom, Vivian de Isadora, but lost her life at the hands of assassins sent by the Grand Magician of Aisel Kingdom, Angelica Lydia Kyrgis. –

– Born in Rutina Castle, Leo had an unhappy childhood. Guided by people’s hands, he was hidden in a wide field with Lena, and when he opened his eyes, the field was filled with corpses. Later, Leo… (excerpt) …Leading knights, Leo attacked Rutina Castle and cornered Prince Eric de Yeriel, but fell victim to the curse of his serving god, Oriax. –

A picture of Lena flashed in his mind.

Though it wasn’t the royal palace, Lena was proudly standing against the backdrop of a vast mansion. Dressed in a luxurious yet unburdened uniform, her hair was short, possibly cut off, and numerous retinue knelt around her, waiting for her command.

Her beauty was breathtaking to the point of causing his heart to race, and the heavy dignity she exuded was evident.

She was looking straight at the camera, her golden eyes glinting with venom, and her tightly pressed lips held fury.

Minseo’s heart ached.

Despite Lena exhibiting the demeanor of an overwhelming ruler, all he could see was his frail little sister struggling. He couldn’t help but picture her as the sister who would drop all authority and dash towards him, crying, “Big brother!”

And then, that lonely, struggling Lena was assassinated.

Knowing the future of Lena in that photograph made it even more regrettable, but at least there was a relief. Minseo felt thankful that the worst tragedy he had imagined had been averted.

It was thanks to Alvin, a friend of Sir Bart, who had refused to vow loyalty to the Third Knight Order.

Bart, unable to bring himself to kill a friend, had asked to send another knight in his stead, evoking his sympathy to spare Alvin’s life. It was a risky decision, yet he couldn’t push Bart.

Ultimately, it turned out to be a good choice. The betrayal he feared never happened, and Alvin prevented Lena’s tragedy. Without him, Lena, caught by the thug… the floating orb trembled.

Minseo focused his mind and began rereading Lena’s ending repeatedly. His previously dark vision brightened a bit.

This ending was quite long. He knew it, but Lena had talent. Given time and energy, she would have flourished her talent in some way.

Back in the day when he raced to the tavern…

Thinking back to the photo of the mischievous Lena, her innocent body laid bare and her captivating eyes twisted his insides.

As long as he didn’t lose his sight…

Frowning, he wondered if his brother would come to the wedding, causing him to abandon his thoughts altogether.

She was a child he must protect at all costs. His sister, whose eyes he could poke without causing her any pain. Maybe because they were tied by blood, she was particularly dear to him, and because of the mistakes he made when he was greedy, he always felt guilty towards her.

Moreover, in the beggar siblings scenario, there was no time or resources to teach Lena.

Once Kaderik de Yeriel, king of the Conrad Kingdom, passed away, Prince Eric would ascend to the throne. Then the knights he had gathered would surely turn their backs on Leo.

In other words, the beggar siblings scenario had a restriction that required them to reclaim their bloodline within a year and a half after the beginning.

While Minseo was reading Lena’s ending, his thoughts shifted elsewhere.

Attempting to forget the rotten Leo and the cold Lena, he pondered anew.

‘Cardinal Berg. There was definitely something about that guy.’

The cardinal had defeated Prince Eric. Then he changed the kingdom’s name to Grania Holy Kingdom.

‘Did this guy know that Eric was tainted by the evil god? Was he holding onto the king’s life for over ten years, and when Leo showed up, he wanted to stir up a fight? Did he aim to swallow the kingdom himself?’

Questions spiraled.

‘Grania Holy Kingdom? Grania? That name sounds familiar…’

Minseo wracked his brain for information.

Many stories he had heard while gathering knights, wondering if they would be of help, confused him, yet a fleeting memory emerged.

– “The Grania Orphanage is planning to reduce the number of children taken in starting next year. The financial troubles are the cause…”

That information was brought to him by a thug he encountered when he opened the information box.

‘Wait a minute. The cardinal said something similar, didn’t he?’

When questioned why he was desperately holding onto the king’s life while pouring out divine power, the cornered cardinal had replied like this with his theory of [The Universal Priest]:

– “…It’s an old matter. Fine. I’ll be honest. The treatment fees were the goal. With that money, I could help many people. But that will end starting next year.”

Grania Orphanage. It was a place that took in and raised children without parents.

A foul smell was rising.

What if the Grania Orphanage was established by Cardinal Berg? What if he was scheming something with the treatment fees received from the royal family?

‘Surely Count Gustave Peter was the key. Their relationship is almost surely wealthy…’

Minseo’s head spun with hope but quickly hit an obstacle.

The two did not seem to have a good relationship. Judging by the cardinal’s attitude, it didn’t seem like he would help Leo, and the moment Count Peter recognized Leo, he informed Marquis Tatian.

What was he supposed to do?

It wasn’t a matter of days but he was getting frustrated to death.

This game didn’t provide even a hint about what, how, or why he should do anything. He had to figure something out purely through speculation, and the moment he failed, he fell into despair.

There was no consideration for difficulty either. As he recalled the existence of the evil god, Minseo sighed deeply.

A creepy entity.

Just like the thought of fighting the sun hovering in the sky wouldn’t cross his mind, that being called Oriax was an object of awe, not an adversary.

‘Though divine power exists and there is a god in this world, this is just too much…’

As he lamented, Minseo barely managed to hold onto his sanity.

If he gave up, it would truly be the end. This game seemed intent on killing him for real.

[ 12/21 ]

Kasia. Thanks to her, a weight was lifted from his heart.

Clearing Kasia’s tether quest had increased his trial attempt limit by one. And as he just learned, the death count had also increased.

[ You have died. 3/4 ]

He had avoided being shoved off a cliff for the moment. But the increased limits suggested something significant. ‘What will happen if that count fills up or exceeds?’ was an indirect answer to his query.

If he fails to meet that restriction, he would… die. This merciless game would not spare him.

‘No. I can’t die like this. I haven’t even done anything yet…’

He wanted to go back.

If he could just return, he’d live diligently. He would honor his parents, call them every day, apologize to Chaehwa for the naughty things he did, and be the sturdy support for them.

He would cut ties with the days spent holed up in a goshiwon playing games and live his life. So please…

Desperately praying, all that surrounded him was the stillness of darkness.

Minseo grew anxious as the ending text slowly began to move up. He was given no time to lament.

It was as if the game was unfeelingly telling him to prepare for the next round. Minseo rapidly brainstormed, recalling the moment Leo cornered Prince Eric.

‘It’s a ridiculous difficulty, but… it’s not without flaws.’

Unlike Leo, who trembled in horror when meeting Oriax, Minseo could analyze from a step back.

Eric de Yeriel, at first, did not summon the evil god. He tried to run away and revealed his power only when cornered.

There had to be some major constraints. There must be a reason why that powerful entity, Oriax, only blinked from a narrow hole.

‘Moreover, the summoned beast wasn’t that strong either. Initially, only ten appeared. Although Prince Eric healed them and summoned more…’

Prince Eric couldn’t even cast the spell to repel knights consecutively. When Leo charged again, he was in imminent danger of being hit by the sword. It was the suddenly appearing shield that was the problem.

If interpreted through the lens of a game Minseo was familiar with, Prince Eric was fulfilling the role of both a summoner of monsters and the role of a healer for summoned creatures.

He gained power by sacrificing corpses, summoning more beasts or healing them.

In many games, it was commonplace for such roles to push back on nearing enemies or cast shields.

‘If he could use such powers so freely, he would have taken the throne long ago. Why would he remain content as a prince for more than ten years? I wouldn’t be surprised if he was stockpiling power… wait a minute!’

Something flashed in Minseo’s mind.

The secret passage of Rutina Castle. The ‘dubs’ at the entrance of the passage. The corpses the prince had sacrificed. The prince who stockpiled power…

If many humans died in that passage, and if Eric’s method of accumulating strength was through that…

It felt like he was piecing together a puzzle. Minseo’s thoughts accelerated.

‘Moreover, that guy ultimately got caught by Cardinal Berg. That might have been possible because the cardinal was hiding something, but perhaps the strength Eric showed was all there was. If that’s the case…!’

For a moment, his happy circuit kicked in, but Minseo sank back into gloom.

No matter how he looked at it, he was still too strong.

The monsters could take out knights, so that was acceptable, but… those eyes! There was no way to counter the shield that clung to Prince Eric.

[ Debuff: Oriax’s Footsteps – Taunt; cannot escape. 16 years, 11 months, 29 days, 22 hours, 40 minutes, 22 seconds. ]

Only Leo was free from that ‘taunt’. For unknown reasons, he was unaffected by the taunt. The knights were caught in a wide area debuff and only rushed towards the monsters.

Therefore, it fell to Leo to deal with Prince Eric… but that shield was the problem.

How would he break it…?

With few opportunities available, he needed to be cautious in attempting anything. Charging in blindly would lead to trouble.

Thoughts of sneaking up to Prince Eric and taking him out came to him, but the prince had the ability to repel anyone who approached him with a single word. Summoning Oriax was also done in an instant, which meant that the same tragic ending awaited him at the first mistake.

Ultimately, Minseo’s thoughts returned to square one.

He needed to find out what kind of power Cardinal Berg was hiding and how he could receive his help.

That seemed to be the normal route.

Then, a text appeared.

Before he knew it, Lena and Leo’s endings had vanished, and the message pushed him to the next round.

[ You did not clear Lena’s Journey. ]

[ Leo, you have encountered the evil god. That achievement grants you the information of {History of the Evil God}. ]

[ It starts again. ]

Scenes of falling from the sky.

It’s been a long time.

‘Is this the fifth time I’m watching this video?’

[ Achievement: ’13th Leo’ – The speed at which the player merges with Leo slightly increases. ]

Even though he grumbled about it, the person standing before him as Leo was someone he could never find tiresome.

Lena, happily picking mountain fruits.

Her hands moved quickly as she chattered joyfully, “I heard from Priest Leslie~.”

How nice to see her.

Meeting a friend after years brought tears to his eyes, and he tilted his head back towards the sky.

‘I’m back again…’

Feeling something hanging at his waist in Demost Village (likely the leather pouch for collecting mountain fruits), Leo took a deep breath.

Last time, he set out to introduce this friend to the prince of the holy kingdom and ended up dead at Bart’s hands.

This time, he would absolutely not let that happen…

Just as Leo raised his hand to comb back his hair, he froze in place. Goosebumps ran down his spine.

There was a hoofprint on his right palm. It was like a mark announcing that a sinner was here. And the {History of the Evil God} information poured into his mind, making what he had previously brushed off stand out vividly.

A tattoo that sometimes raised doubts of being a thug.

Now, the tattoos etched on Leo’s left arm, resembling various horns intertwining, looked all too different.

Barbatos.

That was the symbol of the evil god that Leo’s father, the hunter, served.