Chapter 122

Chapter 122

Spendthrift Necromancer (122)

Cursed Land (1)[All 50 participants have been selected!][Moving to the Cursed Land!]

The scenery changed.

Blackened earth that looked as though it had rotted away. Ruined cities could be seen scattered everywhere.‘Judging by the architecture, it looks like a fantasy setting…….’Messages appeared.[The second trial begins.][You have entered the ‘Cursed Land.’][This is a special stage where experience cannot be gained.][Points will continue to accumulate. However, if you did not experience anything special before, there will be no further changes.][Rules are provided.][Rules][1. Participants are distributed throughout the area.][2. Participants cannot leave the Cursed Land.][3. You are free to do whatever you want. Survive here for one month.][4. If participants share the same nationality, their locations will be displayed at the top.]

The objective was simple.

Survive for one month.

Kim Minwoo immediately checked his inventory.

Food, equipment, consumables, and so on.‘There are no restrictions on using anything?’The ground didn't seem to be swallowing his feet, nor did it appear to be placing curses on him.

What was this?

The theme was too easy.‘Then there must be more to it.’He looked upward.

One red dot and two blue dots were visible.

The red one was him.

The blue ones seemed to be his other guild members.‘Finding them will be easy.’Before moving, he summoned Merhen and Cedric. Merhen looked around and frowned slightly.―This place…… is strange.

“They call it the Cursed Land.”―Yeah. That seems appropriate.

She picked up a little of the pitch-black soil and placed it in her mouth. A moment later, her brow furrowed.―……

Everything's mixed together?

“Mixed?”―Yeah. The taste is complicated. Like a Chimera.

Then Merhen looked at him and asked.―What are we supposed to do here?

“Survive for a month.”―That's…… not very good.

“Why?”―It's angry.

That was when.

The ground began rumbling like an earthquake.―Rooooo!

A distant, echoing cry spread across the entire land.

Cedric's eyes flared.―Something seems to be coming.

“Looks that way.”

Kim Minwoo drew the Necromantic Sword.

Bulge!

Bulge!

The rotten ground swelled like boiling water bubbling upward.

Burst!

The earth erupted in every direction like bubbles popping.

Grotesque masses of tentacles emerged from within.

There were clearly dozens of those tangled masses forming an encirclement around them.

Each tentacle was around 3M long, writhing disgustingly.‘There are a lot of them too.’That was when.―Gross. Die.[Merhen uses Cyclone(SS)

!]

Whoooosh……!

A tremendous pressure of wind ripped every tentacle mass out of the ground. The writhing tentacles were drawn together into a single point.[Merhen uses Great Explosion(SS)

!]

BOOM-BOOM!

A massive chain of explosions erupted.

The tentacle masses shattered into thousands of fragments that rained onto the ground.‘Weak.’Granted, Merhen's magic was SS-rank, but even accounting for that, the tentacles weren't particularly strong. They merely looked disgusting.

That was when.

Some of the shredded tentacle fragments suddenly began gathering in one place. The pieces writhed together like clay and transformed into the shape of a person.

“Ghhk!”

The figure gasped desperately for air.

“Excuse me. Are you all right?”

“W-Water…….”

A gaunt blond man desperately begged for water. Despite his strange language, Minwoo could understand him, so apparently communication worked here just like during the first trial.

The man's condition looked terrible at a glance. Instead of water, Minwoo poured a bottle of Highest-Grade Potion into his mouth.

The man, who had been trembling all over as though convulsing, regained a little color.

“Hah. Hah…….”

“Feeling any better?”

“Wh-Where…….”

“You were one of those strange tentacles until a moment ago.”

The man stared blankly at the tentacle fragments.

“Hah…….”

He let out a hollow sigh of disbelief.

Kim Minwoo's expression hardened as he watched him. Even after drinking a Highest-Grade Potion, his recovery hadn't improved much.‘Was all his vitality drained?’This was usually how someone reacted when the life force that formed the foundation of their body had been completely sucked away.

A potion couldn't save that.

Potions activated existing vitality. They couldn't activate something that no longer existed.

“Cough!”

Sure enough.

Before long, the man began vomiting blood.

“I'm sorry, but you don't have long to live.”

“……

I suspected as much. But you…… how did you end up in this den of monsters……?”

“……

Den of monsters?”

“You…… don't know…… where this is?”

“I don't. Do you know something?”

“This is…… a prison…… a prison holding a terrible monster…….”

“Tell me more.”

Minwoo poured another Potion into the man's mouth. The information he was hearing was worth that much.

The man's eyes brightened.

“There's a monster underground. If sacrifices aren't offered, it wakes up. Hoo…… Black Mages…… took over this place…….”

“Black Mages?”

“……

As long as the monster doesn't wake…… this is the perfect place for them to train. So…… they kidnap people…… and offer sacrifices periodically…….”

They called it the Cursed Land.

Apparently the place was a perfect match for Black Mages.

“How often do you have to offer a sacrifice?”

“……

Once…… a…… day…… the stronger…… the sacrifice…… the stronger…… the curse becomes…… the Black Mages…… have no reason…… to refuse…….”

Damn.

The man didn't seem to have much life left. Minwoo poured another Potion into him, but it did nothing.

He watched the man's mouth closely, trying to gather even a little more information.

“Be……

care……

ful…… as long…… as you're…… here…… the Black Mages…… will…… hunt…… you…… ghk.”

Those were his last words.

Kim Minwoo closed the man's eyes.‘I understand the situation well enough.’From the Black Mages' perspective, this place was a treasure trove as long as they kept offering sacrifices.‘And the participants can't leave.’That meant conflict with the Black Mages occupying this place was inevitable.

They already needed sacrifices, and now an entire batch of promising offerings had suddenly fallen into their laps overnight.‘Looking at it the other way.’This wasn't entirely bad for Minwoo either.

If there were no Black Mages, there was a good chance the Awakened who came here would've turned on each other.

Some would undoubtedly think buying time with sacrifices was better than fighting an unknown monster.‘That cry did sound pretty strong.’The monster underground seemed far more powerful than Duke Timorn…….‘Everyone should've handled the tentacles on their own, at least.’They weren't particularly strong. Any Awakened who reached the second trial should've dealt with a mass of tentacles without much trouble.

Just as Minwoo had heard the situation from this blond man, the other Awakened had probably figured out roughly what was happening by now too.‘First, I should find the guild members.’Their locations were displayed overhead. He would probably encounter Black Mages along the way and could gauge their strength then.

He advanced with his two Legion Commanders.* * *Long ago, the Black Mages discovered a land that was like a blessing to them.

A land where a monster slept.

They destroyed the city above it, then spent a long time offering sacrifices and helping the monster grow.

The power of curses spread across the land.

They erected a barrier to prevent that power from escaping.

And so, after many years, this Cursed Land became a holy land

for Black Mages.

As long as they obeyed a single rule, the Black Mages of the holy land could bask in its glory forever.

Offer one sacrifice every day.

Yet within this holy land.

“……

There are intruders?”

“Reports are arriving from several places.”

Mortan, Priest of the Holy Land, tilted his head.

“There was no sign of the barrier being breached, was there?”

“No. It's perfectly intact. That's why this is even stranger. We have no idea how they entered the holy land…….”

“How strong are they?”

“Several believers have already been defeated.”

Strong enough to defeat believers.

Interest appeared in Mortan's eyes.

They sounded like they would make fairly excellent sacrifices.

“How many?”

“From what we've confirmed so far, at least twenty.”

“We needed some useful sacrifices. How convenient.”

“Yes. It must be His blessing upon us.”

“……

You seem to be forgetting more often lately. We do not worship a god. We merely conduct business with a monster.”

“……

Ah, yes. My mistake.”

“Let's go.”

Mortan rose.

He left the temple with his Black Mages. About two hours passed as they coordinated through crystal orbs and tracked the intruders.

His head suddenly snapped around.

His pupils turned pitch-black.

His field of vision expanded tremendously.

Far in the distance, he spotted a group of three.‘Found them.’His body slid forward. The first to react was Liu Wei, an Awakened wearing equipment styled after a savage beast.

“Rooar!”

Liu Wei instantly transformed into a leopard and charged.

Agile movement.

But to Mortan, it was meaningless resistance.

He had ruled this holy land for decades as its Priest.

The power he'd accumulated wasn't something some mediocre nobody could withstand.

With a single gesture, black spikes erupted from every direction.

Liu Wei immediately transformed into a bear and curled his body inward. The spikes ripped through his thick fur and sank deep into his flesh.

“Groooar!”

The enormous bear struggled desperately.

“At least your strength is somewhat respectable.”

Mortan spoke with a sneer.

The two remaining Chinese Awakened flinched.

Fortunately, they'd been positioned close together and had quickly regrouped.

The person who appeared after they dealt with the tentacles. Through him, they had already learned that Black Mages would come after them.

The problem was.‘How the hell are we supposed to beat this?!’Liu Wei was easily among the top five participants in this tournament. Yet he'd been subdued before he could accomplish anything.

And that Black Mage wasn't alone. Figures in pitch-black robes were gathering behind him.

“Vermin who defiled the sanctuary. Your sin is…….”

That was when.

Liu Wei, who had already returned to human form, shouted urgently.

“W-Wait!”

“……?”

“We'll help you! No, please allow us to help you!”

“Help us?”

“We aren't the only people who came here! You'll need to capture all of them anyway, won't you? We'll help you do it!”

“……

Aren't those people your companions?”

“Companions? There are countries here too, aren't there?”

“There are.”

“They're simply people from other countries! Complete strangers!”

The way he protested with genuine indignation made it seem that he wasn't lying.‘Hmm…….’Mortan thought briefly.

The holy land was vast, and these intruders were fairly strong.

At this rate, he'd have to keep roaming everywhere himself just to hunt the pests scattered like flies.

But if he used these people?

Cleaning the holy land would become much easier.‘Control poison with poison…….’Not a bad idea.

“What do you want?”

“Spare us. That's all.”

“Very well. If you prove your loyalty.”

“……

Prove it how……?”

“Accept the brand.”

Liu Wei swallowed.‘Damn it. They're not going to let this go cleanly.’It sounded like they planned to do something strange.

But he had no other choice.

“……

Fine. But I have a question.”

“It's nothing special. I'll simply carve a mark into your hearts.”

“…….”

The Chinese Awakened's faces twisted as if they'd bitten into shit.

Something carved into their hearts.

That obviously sounded very special.

“……

Yes. We'll do it.”

Liu Wei nodded first.

If he couldn't avoid it, he might as well enjoy it.‘It's not completely hopeless.’Judging by everything so far, this seemed to be another dimension entirely, similar to the inside of a Gate.

The race, language, and appearances were all different.‘I just need to return to Earth.’Even if they carved something into his heart, it didn't seem likely to affect him across dimensions.

He only had to survive one month.

Then the trial ended.‘And maybe this is actually better.’Even Liu Wei, who had taken fifth place in the first trial, had been subdued before he could even catch his breath.

Joining these people and hunting Awakened as sacrifices honestly looked far safer.

The only variable was whoever had taken first place with fifteen million points.‘It can't be pure strength. They must have found some exploit.’He decided to believe that.

If he refused because he was scared of that person, he'd simply die right now.

“What about you? Will you refuse?”

“O-Of course not.”

“We'll accept the brand! We'll prove our loyalty!”

Only then did a smile appear on Mortan's lips.

His hand plunged into the chest of the subdued Liu Wei.

“Ghk!”

“The pain will only last a moment.”

Brands were carved into the chests of the Chinese Awakened.

Mortan's hand pulled back out.

“Hah!”

The Awakened gasped.

Then they shuddered.

An almost unnatural vitality was surging through their bodies.

Mortan smiled coldly at the sight.

Did they know?

The brand worked by draining and burning away their life force.

He had never intended to let intruders who had trampled the holy land with filthy feet survive.

He would use them until they became worthless, then offer them as sacrifices.

He spoke like a man giving orders.

“Find them. Then bring them before me.”

“Understood.”

The Chinese Awakened began moving.