◈ Episode 534. I’ll Go to Hell (3)

China.

“You’ll be good, won’t you?”

A flickering afterimage.

Kinver looked at the rift that had appeared in the city center.

The appropriate level was 650.

It doesn’t look like it’s going to be easy to capture with just those scum.

Elsidor snorted.

“Phew. You think your presence will change anything?”

“……Nah, you’ve got a way with your words.”

“Freedom of speech, that’s the privilege of the strong.”

A chuckling Elsidor added.

“We’ve all gained experience.”

“Experience?”

“It means that the scum rolled around in the dump and became poisonous. Do you know what happens to scum when it’s poisoned?”

“I don’t know.”

“It stinks.”

“What, isn’t that a metaphor?”

“Phew, even metaphors are too much for scum.”

Elsidor shut up at that point.

The venomous assessment was sincere.

The elf’s eyes penetrated the players’ preparations for entering the rift.

Elsidor spoke.

“The ones who stink the worst can be trickier to deal with than the ones who struggle the hardest.”

In some cases.

Except for the time Elsidor spends tending to the Elegant Flower Garden.

That was why he spent all his time in this land of the forsaken.

It was why he was pouring himself into China.

‘Because they will become the shadow that will support you.’

After the collapse of the Heavenly Unity.

China continued to appeal to the international community, including the AAU, for help, but there was no response. That’s why the players’ venom was becoming increasingly venomous

“If we collapse, the country will collapse.”

“……Remember your families and stay strong.”

“The world’s help? We never needed it in the first place.”

“Yes, we are enough!!!”

It’s a strange world, though.

Even in this isolated land, new information and news flowed in real time, which is why those scum are risking their lives to enter the rift.

“Above all, shouldn’t we give back what we’ve been given?”

“For the one who helped us when we were outcasts…….”

“Damn it, no time for chanting. Let’s go in!”

Kinver let out a blood-curdling laugh.

“Does scum knows grace? that’s not even funny.”

The reason China’s isolation from the international community has allowed it to live the way it does is simple. It was because it was supported by “countries” and “groups” that did not need to be seen by the international community.

As in.

“That’s not what you’re supposed to say, is it?”

It was the Kingdom of Yusra and the Goddess Church.

And it was no secret that Hoyeol’s influence was behind the movements of those two powers. A more determined voice came from the other side of the rift.

“We must risk our lives to grow. When you feel like you’re going to die, think of the situation that the Commander-in-Chief of the Holy War Alliance, Lee Hoyeol, is in. We must grow into his proper support force!”

……Actually, he’s not wrong.

Elsidor’s sarcasm.

Kinver scratched his head, unsure of what to say.

He began to rummage through his inventory.

“Kuheum. Enough of this nonsense, why don’t you get ready, silly elf? It’s almost time for the appointment. You know he is someone who is never late for a single second.”

A week passed and it was the day of entering Hell.

You must be busy with the aftermath of the incident…….

but He never forgets an appointment.

Seug.

Elsidor took the [Blood Grown Lycoris Flower ] from Kinver’s hand. Not a breath of wind blows. The petals fluttered as if alive.

“The karma I have accumulated is deceiving me.”

Those who died with a vengeful spirit towards me must be waving their hands at me to go to hell. Of course, Elsidor was not intimidated at all.

The reason is simple.

“After all, I don’t blame them for going to hell.”

If they fell to hell, they fell because they deserved it.

Kinver’s thinking wasn’t much different.

But Kinver was more concerned than Elsidor.

His own weakness.

‘I’m not as strong as Elsidor.’

I could be more of a hindrance than a help.

So if my presence should ever be a hindrance to you in Hell, I’ll be sure to let you know. ……. Kinver gritted his teeth. At that time, I gave up my life without any regrets…….

“Scum, I grant you permission.”

“……what?”

“If hell is too much for you, hold on to my ankles and beg.”

Elsidor continues, still sneering.

“If you beg desperately enough, I will have special mercy on you.”

Grab my ankles if you must.

“……!”

Elsidor was speaking using only Elsidor’s speaking style.

So Kinver fired back in his own way.

A sarcastic voice.

“Fuck you. I’ll grab you by the ankles and roll around.”

A moment’s pause.

The two of them holding Lycoris Flower to the tip of their noses.

The bridge of their noses twitched, and then the Lycoris Flower oozed red. It enveloped their bodies. The bitter blood scent penetrated their minds.

“!”

Kinver, the player’s vision flashed.

[Hell, you’ve found the first gate].

At the same time, the landscape shifted.

“……heub.”

He instinctively clamped his nose, mouth, and breathing holes shut. The sulfurous smoke is so thick that it almost makes you long for the taste of blood. In the background, a desolate landscape unfolds.

It was a lonely looking landscape.

“…… Is this all there is?”

The only thing visible on the desolate land is a single gate.

Even that was far from massive or grandiose.

It was simply a pair of doors that could be opened with both hands.

Kinver muttered.

“So this shabby thing is the first gate?”

He glanced around.

There was no sign of Elsidor, who had entered Hell with him. Even if he stayed here longer, he couldn’t see where he could get any other information. As I said, I couldn’t see anything but the door.

‘Let’s go in.’

So Kinver placed his hand on the first door.

It was then.

A chill ran up his spine, and he felt a breath in his ear.

“……?”

The only thing that had grown in his life as a scum was his liver.

Kinver reached for his dagger, more out of instinct than surprise.

He soon realized the source of the subtle sensation.

[Your sins whisper to you].

“……What was that?”

The First Gate.

A warning that beyond this is where the real hell begins.

Kinver smirked.

If that’s your intention, I’m long past done.

I’d welcome a death crushed by the weight of my sins.

kkiig.

[Hell, you have entered the first gate].

“……!”

Kinver was greeted with a picture that was a stark contrast to the desolate landscape.

A festival or something.

The town was overly decorated.

And an overly elongated ear could be seen at the mouth of the village.

It was Elsidor.

“You’re late, scum.”

And.

“There you are, Lorenzik.”

He looked like a little boy.

“……No, you were here first.”

Kinver returned the awkward gesture of respect.

In fact, Lorenzik’s expression was grim.

The romantic explorer never failed to smile, no matter the situation.

His complexion was pale.

Elsidor caught the hint.

“Is something bothering you, old man?”

*

Lorenzik thought back to the past.

Before he’d been eaten by the creature known as the Bad Omen. He had been so fearless back then, inhaling the scent of flowers without fear of what they might do to him.

[Blood Grown Lycoris Flower]

My first glimpse of Hell?

I was terrified.

The chill I felt as I grasped the doorknob.

The sight beyond the door.

But not as much as this moment.

“……It’s different.”

“What do you mean, different?”

“It’s different, no matter how you look at it.”

I don’t know the name of the town, or the identities of the faceless people who roam it. Like I said, I was overwhelmed with fear and ran like hell out of there.

But I remember one thing clearly.

“This is not the hell I remember.”

The sound of musical instruments.

The smell of food wafting through the village.

The way the landscape looked like it was being prepared for a festival.

It was a far cry from the desolate villages he had witnessed in the past.

The great explorer’s instincts were telling him.

This was too dangerous.

“What’s the matter, old man? What if it’s a festival, what if it’s not? Could it be that we entered on such a day by accident?”

Lorenzik replied to Elsidor’s question.

“You’re right.”

“……?”

“If this were a normal Arcana continent town.”

The words struck Elsidor with a dawning realization.

Yes, it was.

This was hell.

Demons, or those who had done things that deserved to go to hell.

For such subjects.

A place for those who couldn’t let go of their evil even after death.

The festival of such spirits was called…….

“Aha, does that mean they’re happy to see us?”

I thought so.

“They think we’re prey?”

Sreung.

At Elsidore’s words, Kinver reached out his hand toward his dagger.

Lorenzik shook his head.

Then he raised his voice.

“Do you really think so? If they were truly after us, they would have already pounced on us the moment we grabbed the doorknob and entered the gate!”

“……?”

At that, I turn my head to look out over the town.

Lorenzik was right.

There was no hostility toward them from the faceless spirits.

Lorenzik stammered.

“……That was the first reason I was afraid.”

It was.

All those spirits are waiting for one thing.

Only one.

The Commander in Chief of the Holy War Alliance.

Elsidor hissed.

“We must not allow this to continue.”

But Lorenzik was not finished.

“But there is a second reason I fear even more.”

“What else is left, old man?”

“It has passed.”

“It’s passed?”

“It’s past the time we promised.”

“……!!”

Elsidor and Kinver.

The mere fact that Hoyeol hadn’t entered Hell on time. Their pupils fluttered wildly, unperturbed by the dreary atmosphere of the Hell Town.

Lorenzik opened his mouth.

“No, I stand corrected. He must have kept his promise. Then there is only one possibility. Yes, it is clear that He has not yet passed.”

The first gateway where original sin whispers.

“……what?”

Lorenzk asked, his voice cracking with despair.

“Is the Original Sin passed down through blood really that deep?”

*

There is a saying, ‘Don’t worry about life’.

‘……I said I was in a good mood.’

This morning.

At the kitchen table, with my parents and a hungover Wensu glaring at me, I declared that I was going to hell. Needless to say, they were horrified at first.

‘…… I thought the snout was quiet for some reason.’

And yet, thanks to the silent snout.

I left no room for misunderstanding or mistake.

I was warmly greeted and allowed to enter Hell.

I was even cheered on by Wensu.

-“Be sure to find the answer in hell.”

Why is going to Hell the answer? Because in Hell, I’ll be able to meet the Akshan seniors, complete the class quest, get the reward, and grow to the next level.

‘Then I’ll be better able to bear the burden.’

The press is quiet now, thanks to Matisse’s proof, but I don’t want to cause them unnecessary worry when they’ll soon be talking about me.

I meant to convey all my plans without the slightest hint of concealment, not in the Grandfell way, but in Lee Hoyeol’s way, and enter Hell through the [Blood Grown Lycoris Flower].

But, holy shit……!

cheog.

The first gateway, the moment I put my hand on the doorknob.

I felt a chill through all five senses.

A chill that enveloped my entire body.

I checked my vision, which flashed brightly.

[Your sins whisper to you.]

[Your sins whisper to you.]

[Your sins whisper to you.]…….

I kind of expected him to be a sinful man, given his needless secrecy……. Isn’t this one sinful thing too many, Grandfell?

A moment of grumbling, then a glittering final message.

[How dare you set foot in this place.]

[A truly great bloodline.]

[Claudi.]

‘……!’

The message reminded me.

Grandfell, the little Claudi-boy I’d seen in the space-time quest.

The view of the Lycoris Flower field behind him.

As it turns out, my guess was not wrong.

The original sin that was being poured out now was not the sin of 『Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo』. It was the original sin of blood that Claudi had accumulated as part of the ascension to a great family that no one else could touch.

Then.

If it were the Grandfell I know.

What would I say in this situation?

“Come.”

Damn it, I knew it.

“As the head of the Claudi family, I will face you.”

That would be a very typical response, Grandfell……!!!