Chapter 420: Confront and Protect (7)

The first thing Cale saw when his eyes snapped open was—

[Sub-quest Generated: "Communicate with the System"]

[Requesting Conversation!]

A translucent window… and Raon’s swollen eyes.

"Hmm."

Cale let out an involuntary sigh—

– Cale. You still have the sword in your hand.

Super Rock's voice echoed, and Cale felt the weight of his hands on his abdomen.

– Your skin is still gray.

Cale looked down to observe his body.

Though he couldn’t see much while lying down, the hands sticking out from under the blanket were definitely gray.

But it wasn’t like Choi Jung Gun’s case.

There aren’t even any protruding veins.

It was simply… gray skin.

– And you can let go of the sword now.

Super Rock was right.

– Sniff, sniff.

The Sound of Wind sniffed the air and joined the conversation.

– It still smells like the God of Chaos’ artifact, but it’s different from before.

Cale tightened his grip for a moment.

He felt his hands respond.

Yes—
he could already let go of the sword whenever he wanted.

The sacred artifact had calmed down.

"H-Human!"

Then, Raon's trembling voice reached his ears.

Cale glanced toward him.

Looking at Raon, Cale was startled.

"!"

Because the baby dragon's round eyes were brimming with tears.

“Human! Does it still hurt from that sword? You can’t let go? Do you want me to destroy the God of Chaos? Or should I destroy the sword first?!”

Raon looked like he was ready to break the sword right now.

His eyes burned with fury.

"No!"

So, Cale quickly answered.

"Cough!"

A rough groan escaped him.
After three days without speaking, his throat burned.

"Human!"

Raon’s expression twisted with even more worry, and Cale, afraid the dragon might actually destroy something, quickly shouted:

"I'm hungry!"

"!"

Raon’s already round eyes widened even more.

"Oh."

And then his expression brightened just a little.

When his human said he was hungry, it was a sign he was getting better.

"Hehe."

Raon immediately pulled an apple pie from his inventory.

Cale opened his mouth.

And Raon, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, shoved a piece of pie straight into it.

"......"

Cale began chewing the pie calmly.

“Human, but doesn’t it still hurt? Your skin is still gray! It looks contaminated by chaos!”

Chew, chew.

“Ah, right! Now you can’t talk! I can wait.”

Chew, chew.

Cale kept eating.

He was definitely hungry.

– I'm already full.

The Glutton Priestess still sounded satisfied.

– I haven't digested it all yet.

Cale stopped chewing.

You’re still digesting?

When he had faced the power of the God of Chaos’ Saint in Aipotu…

The Dominating Aura and the Sky Eating Water had absorbed a fragment of the chaos, and Cale had to pass out to digest it.

Sure, this time he had been unconscious for three days.

But still…

You haven’t finished digesting it yet?

What the hell had the Glutton Priestess eaten?

The forty-three rituals.

The power accumulated for the God of Chaos’ descent.

She had swallowed all the water the sacred artifact had released.

– Yes. It will probably take more than half a year to digest it.

...Wow.

Cale decided not to think about how the Glutton Priestess would change after this.

The Indestructible Shield.

Cale’s first power—
and the one he relied on the most.

She had already grown so much, but imagining how she might evolve after absorbing this was… difficult.

"Human, do you want more?"

Chew, chew.

Cale nodded as Raon carefully pressed another piece of pie toward his mouth, making sure it wouldn’t fall.

It’s delicious.

Apple pie.
Did it always taste this good after fainting?

– You're crazy.

He ignored Super Rock's lament.

"Ha. This is incredible."

Startle~

The voice of the Ancient Dragon, Eruhaben, reached his ears.

Eruhaben’s here too?

Cale felt embarrassed for a moment, but quickly forced himself to act composed.

He turned his gaze toward the source of the sound.

Step, step.

Eruhaben was approaching.

He and Raon had been taking care of both Alberu and Cale.

"Hold on a second."

Cale stopped Raon, who was trying to shove more pie into his mouth, and addressed the Ancient Dragon.

"How's he doing?"

"He's fine."

Eruhaben supported Cale and helped him sit up.

Cale’s eyes shifted to the side.

“Alberu is physically fine. He fainted from exhaustion, but he’s fully recovered now.”

The Ancient Dragon’s expression stiffened slightly.

“It’s just that… he’s not waking up.”

Alberu, who should have woken up long ago, was still unconscious.

As Eruhaben and Raon’s faces filled with worry, Cale spoke.

“I met the God of Death in my dreams.”

The moment he said that, Eruhaben’s eyes gleamed with interest.

His gaze fixed on Cale.

“So Alberu too…?”

“He might have met the Sun God.”

Mmm.

It was a reasonable assumption, so Eruhaben nodded.

"Let's wait a little longer."

"Yes."

Cale nodded, but his eyes softened as he looked at Alberu.

…Passing out for three days must be rough.

Alberu used to log out periodically to communicate with the Roan Kingdom.
Cale would send him updates through the sacred mirror.

It was part of his duties.

While Alberu was unconscious, his companions had surely informed the Roan Palace about his condition.

…Or maybe not.

Either way…

…He’ll have a lot of work when he wakes up…

Prince Alberu.

Poor guy.

The moment Cale thought that—

“Human! This is the first time the Prince has passed out! Why are you looking at him with so much pity? You’ve passed out way more than him! Reflect!”

Faced with Raon’s scolding, Cale couldn’t say anything.

This time, the fainting was his own choice, so he had no excuse.

"......"

Eruhaben sighed at Cale’s silence and shook his head.

"Cale, are you really okay?"

Mmm.

Cale looked down at his hands.

Gray.

“Yes. I’m fine, and I think there’s a way to reverse it.”

His gaze shifted toward the air.

The translucent window.

[Sub-quest Generated: "Communicate with the System"]

It was a simple quest: talk to the System.

The only strange part was that the target was the System itself.

But for Cale, that was normal.

“Let me talk to the System for a moment.”

Raon and Eruhaben both nodded.

Eruhaben sat down on a chair between Alberu and Cale, while Raon rubbed his face against Cale’s thigh.

[Yes/No]

When Cale selected "Yes"...

ZZZT–!

A distorted dialogue window appeared.

It was red, like the Red Hand.

[$^@^& Long time.]

But the conversation was far more stable than before.

ZZZT–

Mmm.

The buzzing in Cale’s ears was still the same, but…

Since a lengthy conversation was impossible, Cale went straight to the point.

“Remove this gray color from my skin and change the sacred artifact’s property to nothing.”

He stated his demand bluntly.

“Be it a quest or a reward. Solve these two problems.”

Do it.

Cale simply asked for it to be done.

He had stopped the God of Chaos’ arrival, hadn’t he?

The System should reward him.

[!@*#%]

But the System seemed to have something to say.

[@#%Everything, revealed@%^]

"Eh?"

Cale froze.

"Everything revealed?"

What?

What could they have revealed?

As confusion filled Cale’s eyes—

Startle~

Eruhaben suddenly froze.

Cale caught the movement, and a chill ran down his spine.

[!($%)5 I'll do as you ask#%&]

The System agreed to his request.

[@#$% But only as a quest#%& If it's a reward, they might discover me!#%]

“Discover you? You?”

Startle~

This time, it was Raon who jolted violently.

What’s going on?

Why were they reacting like this?

Suddenly, unease crept up Cale’s back.

By the way… where are we?

He should have asked that first, but he’d been too focused on analyzing everything else.

[@#^% Will you accept it?]

[@#%If not, I'm @%^ in danger]

ZZZT–

The buzzing grew louder.

The conversation was about to end.

Cale found this strange.

Even though the conversation was smoother—suggesting the System now had more control—it was acting more cautiously.

As if it’s afraid of being watched…

Cale's eyes darkened.

"Yes. I'll help you."

He accepted.

[Thank youㅠㅠ]

The System window disappeared after its final message.

[Quest Generated!]

[Quest Generated!]

[Quest Generated!]

Three quests appeared one after another.

[Sub-quest Generated: Obtain the Chaos Purification skill!]

[Sub-quest Generated: Change the sacred artifact's property to nothing!]

Two quests related to his gray skin and the artifact.

And then—

[Sub-quest Generated: Protect the System from (주)Transparent!]

Eh?

Seeing the last quest, Cale understood the source of the cold feeling running down his spine.

“…Eruhaben-nim. What happened while I was unconscious? And where are we?”

While looking at the Ancient Dragon, Cale focused on the new quests—
and completely overlooked one of the previous ones.

There was still a quest he hadn’t completed.

[The impact of the Birth Ceremony is spreading rapidly!]

[Beyond the New World, to the Earth 3, a legend is being forged!]

[The reward level determination is postponed!]

The “Eden Miru Birth Ceremony” quest, which had already exceeded 300%…

But the progress calculation had changed again.

[There are signs of a new change in the Birth Ceremony legend!]

[An even greater legend is being born, and the Birth Ceremony will be a part of it!]

[In that case, the progress will be calculated based on the larger legend.]

[Birth Ceremony Progress: 412%]

Meanwhile, the New World forums were exploding with theories.

One particular post caught attention.

-----

If what’s happening now in the New World is to expel the God of Chaos…
Wasn’t it the same when the Darkness Dragon appeared, the one tied to the Seventh Evil?
And in the Western Empire, wasn’t there a quest related to the Kingdom of Darkness?
But the baby dragon said he came from the Kingdom of Darkness.
Then the Kingdom of Darkness and the Eight Evils… could they be connected?

-----

[Birth Ceremony Progress: 415%]

The percentage kept rising quickly.

But Cale didn't notice.

Instead, Eruhaben and Raon handed him several recording devices.

"...What is this?"

Cale looked at Eruhaben with discomfort.

“Mm.”

Eruhaben answered in a short, heavy tone.

“First, our fight was broadcast.”

…Eh?

“Fortunately, the System didn’t appear.”

…What?

“And right now, there’s a huge uproar.”

…How?

“See for yourself.”

The recording devices—used by users to stream inside the New World—contained videos that could be exported.
Hours of raw, unedited footage.

“The last one hasn’t been made public. We caught the ones who were recording it,” Eruhaben explained.

Raon added, voice full of guilt,
“Human, I’m sorry! The users who went down to the canyon with us… they revealed everything!”

Ah.
Them.

Cale remembered the two users he had ignored during the fight.

“By the way, they’re with us now,” Eruhaben continued.

He gestured toward the device.
“Just watch it.”

Cale didn’t want to watch those videos.
But his hand moved anyway.

“The last one starts after you passed out.”

Cale shifted his gaze to Eruhaben.

“You’ll understand everything once you see it.”

Cale took the device and pressed play.

* * *

“Human!”

Cale collapsed.

Raon and the Heavenly Demon caught him before he hit the ground.

“…He’s stable now.”

The Heavenly Demon checked the sword in Cale’s hand first.
Only after confirming that its power had completely vanished did, he touch Cale.

But…

It’s bad.

Cale’s body was still gray.
Not a hint of color on his face.

Severe blood loss.

It was a miracle he hadn’t died from it.

The Heavenly Demon placed a hand near Cale’s heart.
It was beating strongly—yet his condition was undeniably dire.

And then…

The prince.

Alberu Crossman.

He was still groaning, stuck somewhere between consciousness and unconsciousness.

Buzz—

A faint vibration.
Different from the Sun Sword’s earlier tremors.

And on top of that…

“The situation isn’t good either.”

To be honest, it was desperate.

The Heavenly Demon, standing on the rock, surveyed the surroundings.

The sanctuary had turned into a gray forest.

Fortunately, everyone—including Rosalyn and Gashan—was gathered close to the rock.
And the members of the Church of the God of Sun were allies.

But most of them aren’t in good shape.

Choi Han and Raon, who had been the least affected by the God of Chaos’ power, were relatively fine.
The others… not so much.

Rosalyn, supported by Gashan, still had blood at the corner of her lips.

Their allies’ condition was a problem…
but the enemies were another matter.

Those surrounding the rock—

Enemies.

Tens of thousands of followers.
The cult leaders.
Even the Wanderers.

All of them were still alive.

The cult isn’t an immediate concern.

With the Saint’s death and the appearance of the God of Chaos’ eyes, the cult leaders hadn’t recovered yet.
Neither had the followers.

Especially the ones who had barely recovered from the chaos, still staring blankly around them.

The real problem is—

There was only one.

“The Wanderers.”

The Ancient Dragon’s voice echoed.
He was clearly still holding out—
but neither he nor the Heavenly Demon was at full strength.

Clang!

Someone stepped forward in front of them.

"Choi Han."

“Leave them to me and get out of here.”

Choi Han's gaze fixed on the two Wanderers.

Cho and Ryeon.

But they weren’t looking at him.

Only at one person—

Cale Henituse, collapsed on the ground.

Ryeon, in particular, was staring at him with unsettling focus.

A voice reached her:

“Will you fight?”

Despite the distance, the clear voice reached her.

The swordsman with black hair and eyes pointed his sword at her.

"......"

Ryeon did not answer.

Cho whispered to her:

"Samhwang, the Third Emperor will arrive soon."

The Five Colored Hunter Families.

Among the Wanderer families, only three possessed the true “Five-Colored” level Unique Power.
And the weakest of those three… would arrive at dawn.

"......"

Ryeon didn’t answer.
Instead, she slowly lowered her arm.

Crack—

The air around her turned icy-cold as frost spread over her hand.

"......"

"......"

Since teleportation was impossible, Choi Han and the others gathered around Cale and Alberu, preparing to flee with flight magic if necessary.

– Rosalyn. You escape first.

Eruhaben’s voice reached her.

– I trust you to take care of Cale and Alberu.

– Raon will go with you. You can take the sacrifices too.

Damn it.

Rosalyn bit her lips hard.

She hadn’t done much in the battle, yet she was seriously injured.
Without the strength of a unique quality, it was nearly impossible to endure that kind of chaos.

Gashan and Rosalyn—
both of them were in worse condition than Cale and Alberu.

And besides…

It must be hard for you.

Eruhaben was struggling too.
He didn’t possess a Unique Power either.
And still, he was holding on.

Because of the weight of being a dragon.

The moment Eruhaben, Choi Han, and the Heavenly Demon confronted the Wanderers—

Damn it!

Rosalyn squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them again.

She didn’t spout anything foolish like, I’ll fight.

Whrrr—

She gathered the last remnants of her mana.

Escape.
That was what she could do.
And that alone would help.

It was still night.
But there was no trace of gray anymore.
A clear night sky.

That was the direction they needed to flee toward.

"!"

At that moment, she froze.

"Ah."

And she smiled.

"!"

"......!"

She wasn't the only one.

Every strong fighter on the battlefield stopped moving and looked up.

The gorge.

The Death Cliff.

From there, countless eyes were watching them.

Not the sacrifices.

These were the gazes of many different beings.

Rosalyn spoke.

“They’re the inhabitants of the Demon Kingdom.”

She had explored the Demon Kingdom with Alberu before.
Her gaze moved toward a specific direction.

"They came from the Dark Elf side."

She knew that area well.
There was a reason she had been there—

It was part of one of Alberu’s quests.

Main Mission 1 [Become the First Dark Elf Emperor] In progress

Sub Mission 5 [Gain the Recognition of the Jungle Witch] In progress

The Jungle Witch.
A Dark Elf.

And Alberu and Rosalyn had already met the Dark Elves of the Demon Kingdom.

Rosalyn looked at the unconscious Alberu.

“Either way… they’re allies.”

Countless Dark Elves stood at the edge of the canyon, watching the scene below.
Their gazes were fixed on one person—

Alberu. 

 -----

P/R Thoughts: Cale wakes to new quests, new problems, and a battlefield that hasn’t calmed at all — just as the Dark Elves arrive and lock onto Alberu.

***

If you find any errors or have suggestions, please feel free to provide feedback.

Thank you for reading!

[Author – Yu Ryeo Han]

[Translator – Anowa]

[Proofreader – Mayank]