Chapter 314: Episode 314

The Land of Despair was located at the southern edge of the continent. It was a volcanic region home to the Demecore Fortress and the SS-rank Dios dungeon. Ten years ago, fourteen Transcendents were dispatched to the fortress following an oracle. Although two were missing following the death of King Leopard, the remaining twelve were more than enough to halt Dios’s advance. However, the sudden appearance of Main Forces from other dungeons instantly shattered that balance.

[The SS-rank Hero Guardian Teyvolk has cast Volcano.]

[The SS-rank Hero Keeper Dicolona of the Dark Clouds has cast Designation of the Defeated.]

[The SS-rank Hero Guardian Ramatya of the Divine Bow has cast Roaring Thunder.]

The rapidly multiplying Main Forces unleashed their limited-use skills, instantly devastating the fortress. The Transcendents fought desperately to hold back the army, but as they began to fall behind in firepower, they were relentlessly pushed onto the defensive. It was pure pandemonium. Longdon of the Peshant Empire, the only one still standing at the vanguard, swallowed his shock as he watched mana stretching into the sky.

“W-what on earth is happening? Where is all that mana heading?!”

“You’re destined to die anyway, so it won’t matter if you hear it. That mana is currently heading toward the Holy Kingdom. It’s the mana we’ve been gathering from the SS-rank dungeons all this time. In terms of mana value alone, it’s easily over ten million.”

“What do you intend to do with that much mana? Are you bastards planning to destroy the continent?”

The Main Force acting as the vanguard captain sneered. If destroying the continent had been their goal in the first place, they would have advanced long ago. The reason they had been gathering mana all this time without making a move was precisely to wait for this moment.

Currently, forces from the Ain Kart Holy Kingdom and most other powerful nations were gathered at Ashlan, the capital of the Aneis Kingdom. A fierce battle must have been waged over the capital. Amidst the chaos, the death of Pope Luminus—who held Behel’s authority—spelled the end of the Ain Kart Holy Kingdom.

“We—or rather, the Demons—are planning to subjugate the Celestial Realm. With Pope Luminus dead, there is no one left to protect Ain Kart. Soon, a gate leading to the Celestial Realm will open. I’ll let you watch right up until the moment you die, as a special favor.”

“A gate to the Celestial Realm. That’s ridiculous…”

As Longdon expressed his dismay, dozens of streaks of light faded away. Suddenly, intense divine power surged from the west. Longdon turned his head belatedly and witnessed an unbelievable sight.

[The gate leading from the capital Partisan to the Celestial Realm has opened.]

[The dimensional passage connecting the Celestial Realm and the continent will be maintained for a certain period of time.]

A massive white gate materialized, large enough to be seen even from the southern edge of the continent. The mana cores embedded along its frame began to spew the mana gathered inside, activating the gate. When the swirling dimensional wall stabilized, the scenery of the Celestial Realm Pletas was already visible within.

“M-my god!”

“It seems you finally realize it. Once we subjugate the angels of the Celestial Realm Pletas, Duke Nikunbel’s plan will be in its final stages. Now, since you’ve seen it for yourself, it’s about time for you to die.”

“Ugh. I will never let you bastards have your way!”

Now that the gate to the Celestial Realm had appeared, the Transcendents who had received the oracle had to stop the dungeon’s advance at all costs. Even if it was a matter concerning the Celestial Realm, it was an undeniable fact that the end of the continent was drawing near.

Longdon slammed his Phoenix’s Spear into the ground, his resolve firm.

“Even if my life burns away, you will not pass here. I’ll wipe you all out!”

The Eternal Flame heated the earth even further. Longdon was a Transcendent who had obtained the Eternal Flame after accidentally discovering a phoenix feather in his childhood. It was safe to say that his abilities had now reached a level far superior to the other Transcendents.

The demon leading the vanguard wagged its tail and shrugged.

“If you really want to struggle, I suppose I should grant your wish. It’s a shame; I was going to kill you painlessly.”

“Come at me, all of you.”

“We were planning to anyway.”

One by one, the SS-rank Main Forces revealed themselves from the rear. They were the enemies the other Transcendents had been holding off, but their arrival here meant that Longdon was now the only one left.

Longdon ignited his entire body with a resolute expression.

—

Meanwhile, the capital Ashlan, which had been turned into a dungeon, had its entire area obliterated along with the destruction of the crystal sphere.

“Ugh. What on earth happened?”

A single druid crawled out from beneath a pile of corpses. They had definitely been in the middle of fighting Yuslan alongside the other armies after the Dungeon Master of Balak broke their promise. However, due to the sudden appearance of other dungeon soldiers, not only the Frost Army but also the Eastern Federation had been completely wiped out. Ultimately, with both the Frost Queen Yuslan and Archbishop Messiah losing their lives to the other Main Forces, he was barely clinging to life.

The druid despaired as he looked at the corpses littering the ground.

’This is hell.’

Allies and enemies alike, without exception, were left as cold corpses. He couldn’t find a single survivor besides himself.

The druid Psihan wandered aimlessly with a devastated expression. Just then, he spotted a nobleman collapsed on the ground.

“My daughter. My daughter Valona. Where are you? Your father cannot see, so I cannot find you.”

It was a middle-aged man crawling on the ground with shackles on his wrists and ankles. Blinded, he wandered aimlessly, revealing clear bloodstains around his eyes.

Psihan stared at him for a long time before turning his back. It was a pitiful sight, but he had to look for other druids first.

’The Eastern Federation was facing off against Balak’s soldiers at the south gate, so I might find something if I head this way.’

Since the entire area was devastated, he had to rely on his sense of direction. Psihan passed by various corpses and arrived at the location etched in his memory.

By chance, he managed to find a living survivor among the corpses of the Attackers.

“Ahem! I-is anyone there?” He coughed.

“O-oh my. Commander Hyacinth, how did you end up like this?”

“Ah! P-please don’t touch it. The shrapnel is lodged so deep that it’ll be unbearable the moment you pull it out.”

Just as Hyacinth said, the injury was severe. The shrapnel that had pierced through her slender leg and embedded itself deep into the ground couldn’t be resolved with mere brute force. Even if he managed to pull the shrapnel out, he would have to deal with the excessive bleeding. Psihan took a deep breath as he recalled the Art of Healing he had learned.

“Phew. I’m going to pull the shrapnel out and cast the Art of Healing now. Extreme pain will follow, so please brace yourself.”

“W-wait a minute. I’m fine, so… Ah!”

“Ugh!”

The shrapnel, lodged all the way to its root, was slowly and forcefully pulled out. At the same time, her screams echoed across the battlefield, but stopping halfway would only make the pain worse.

An upper-class druid’s strength was on par with an A-rank warrior Attacker. Squeezing out every last ounce of his strength, Psihan succeeded in pulling out the shrapnel.

“Ah! It hurts. It hurts. I said it hurts!”

“Ahh! Please stay still. I will cast the Art of Healing on you right away.” She panted.

As expected, blood began to pour out like a fountain. Hyacinth rolled on the ground in excruciating pain, but doing so only worsened the bleeding.

Psihan quickly calmed her down and cast the Art of Healing.

[The upper-class priest druid Psihan is casting the Art of Healing.]

[The S-rank Attacker Hyacinth’s injuries are beginning to heal.]

Gradually, her agonizing thrashing ceased. Seeing her ragged breathing calm down meant it was taking effect.

Psihan poured all his remaining energy into restoring her leg to normal.

“Phew. With this, you should be able to walk for now.”

“Thank you. I think this is my first time being treated by a priest of the order. Please, next time—no, wait. I don’t want to experience this ever again in the first place.”

“If you have the energy to complain, I suppose you don’t even need to rest. Here. Let’s get up.”

The grumbling Hyacinth stood up with his support. Just as he said, her leg seemed to have perfectly recovered, as she couldn’t feel any pain.

The two of them continued to wander the battlefield, searching for other survivors.

However, perhaps there were no more survivors other than the nobleman from earlier, as they couldn’t detect any presence, not even the faintest sound of breathing.

Just then, they discovered a gruesome corpse in the area that had been dungeonized.

“This is too cruel. To have all her limbs severed on top of that. Ugh.”

Psihan fell silent.

It was a woman who had drawn her last breath with both her arms and legs cut off. Without needing any further explanation, the traces of the terrible things she had suffered were left intact all over her body.

“Ah, Valona. My daughter. Valona. Where are you!”

Soon, a sorrowful wail echoed out. War always snatched away the most precious things in this manner.

Perhaps that nobleman had also lost someone precious due to the war.

Psihan lightly tapped the ground three times, praying for the dead in the manner of his order.

—

“P-please take care of Kalisia and Vera, Taehyun.”

Kadum, who had sustained a deep sword wound while fending off the Absolute, finally lost his life. Perhaps they had grown attached to him while working together all this time, as the High Elves also maintained a solemn silence.

Kadum, the only hunter of Balak. He had constantly strived to protect his wife and daughter, but in the end, he had made Kalisia a widow.

“N-no. Don’t do this. Eleonora, please!”

“Don’t die. I said don’t die. If you die, I won’t forgive you. Are you listening? Hey, Inhye!”

“I haven’t even properly atoned to you yet. Get up. I said get up!”

Soon, the screams of his comrades rang out. On the other side, Inhye was slowly dying.

Unlike Kadum, she hadn’t died instantly, but due to her deep internal injuries, her death was all but certain.

Taehyun silently approached Inhye. For a moment, Hendy and Sihan’s resentful glares were directed at him, but his footsteps did not stop.

“Taehyun?”

“Yeah, it’s me.”

“Ah, could you hold my hand just once?”

“Sure.”

A cold body temperature could be felt through their clasped hands. Inhye smiled contentedly with a pale face before closing her eyes.

Taehyun remained silent.

He couldn’t feel her breathing. Her trembling hand soon fell limply to the ground.

The three people beside her turned pale, gripped by immense shock. Seeing that she was no longer breathing, it was clear she was dead.

Taehyun checked the message that popped up before his eyes and stood up.

“T-Taehyun, Taehyun, where are you?”

There was still one woman left who had been calling out to him since earlier. Taehyun slowly approached her as she lay on the sofa.

The first Supporter he had summoned after moving to Balak, and the Supporter who had stayed by his side from the early days until now. And the Supporter who had always devoted herself to the Dungeon Master.

She had belatedly succeeded in Evolution and provided immense help in battle, but now she was facing death.

“I’m here.”

“Taehyun, please don’t be swayed by your emotions. You’ve run all the way here solely for your goal. Cough! W-we are beings who devote ourselves only to the Dungeon Master. You will definitely be able to return to your original world.”

“I get it, so stop talking. You’re bleeding from your mouth. That pretty face of yours is going to get ruined.”

“It’s been a very long time since I’ve heard a compliment. Although I couldn’t win your heart, please don’t forget me. I’ve always loved you. Thank you, Taehyun.”

Soon, another message popped up before his eyes.

[Helper Message]

[The Supporter of Dungeon Balak does not exist. Please use a Supporter Summon Card to summon a Supporter.]

It was the helper message he had seen during his first summon. Taehyun watched Riel’s figure slowly fade away before heading to the final room.

“Valpurgis welcomes you, Taehyun.”

“With the mana stones I currently have, how much can I raise the grade?”

“Up to S-rank Stage 7 is possible.”

“What if I use Evolution?”

“Cannot compute.”

It was an ego that had awakened while crafting an ancient artifact. Although it was speaking through a Neutralization Artifact, Valpurgis was a lifeform born entirely through Balak’s Crystal Sphere.

He had intended to save it as a trump card after clearing out the capital Ashlan, but there was no more time.

Taehyun wiped his eyes and cast Evolution on Balak’s Crystal Sphere.

“From now on, we prepare to block the final attack.”

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