Chapter 106 ….
Grand Hall, Lair Grand Temple
“Ah. You’ve arrived.”
“…So you came.”
“Hm? This time you’re with High Priest Herti.”
“But I don’t see Sir Zerdik.”
As he entered the hall, countless gazes stabbed toward him.
Some were curious about Zerdik’s absence, while others found it strange that he had entered together with Gamilion.
They were wondering when the two had grown close.
“Hmm…”
However, a few elders and high priests cast meaningful looks his way.
When Dohyun gave a slight nod, they returned the gesture and turned their eyes away.
‘Those must be the ones Gamilion mentioned.’
They were the people who had agreed to help with the thing Dohyun requested.
Having confirmed their faces, Dohyun decided to pretend ignorance for now and received the greeting from High Priest Gildetti.
“You’re a bit late. I apologize—something came up briefly.”
“Hehe, it’s quite alright. Now everyone is gathered.”
“…High Priest Gildetti. Why is Sir Zerdik not present? He isn’t one to miss something like this.”
At the question from another high priest, Gildetti’s kindly smiling face stiffened as if it had never smiled at all.
His brow twitched briefly, but he quickly regained composure and spoke.
“…Sir Zerdik had circumstances and could not attend the meeting. He asked for your understanding.”
Murmurs grew louder at those words.
“Sir Zerdik, you say… It must have been quite serious.”
“Hm… He’s not the type to simply skip.”
“But the timing is a bit… unsettling. Is it just me?”
“You’re suspecting Sir Zerdik when there’s no one else to suspect? You all know his situation. If it’s the Abyss, he detests it…”
“Ahem, I’m just saying it feels off.”
In a situation like this, suddenly being absent would normally invite suspicion.
It showed just how consistent Zerdik’s image had been all this time.
At that sight, Dohyun’s expression turned slightly bitter.
‘Just as expected.’
He must know something had befallen Zerdik.
No—since Zerdik was his escort knight, there was no way he wouldn’t know. Judging by how he was covering it up, Dohyun’s prediction seemed correct.
That was precisely why Dohyun composed his expression even more carefully.
He couldn’t let the bastard notice anything unusual.
‘I have to be certain.’
There was only one chance. If this failed, everything would be for nothing.
And Dohyun wasn’t confident he could clean up the aftermath.
“Thank you all for gathering. Given the gravity of the matter, I must move straight to the point—please understand. Could I hear the progress on what I asked of you? If you’ve obtained any information, please share it.”
As if waiting for those words, the elders responded immediately.
“We’ve taken proper measures so citizens can evacuate to shelters at any time. To avoid panic, we’ve framed it as disaster drills…”
“We dispatched an investigation team to check for traces within the city…”
“This is what we have done.”
One by one, they reported their progress, their faces resolute.
After listening quietly, High Priest Gildetti slowly raised his hand. The voices stopped at once.
“You have all worked very hard. Thanks to you, the citizens will remain safe.”
“…”
“Whew… Now it is my turn to share what I have discovered.”
Gildetti let out a long sigh, his face grave enough to naturally draw everyone’s attention.
Just as everyone waited to hear what he had uncovered—
“They say it’s darkest under the lamp.”
Gildetti finally spoke.
“…After investigation, the Destroyer Gaiman appears to be residing within the city. And has been for quite some time.”
A shocking statement settled over the grand hall.
For a moment, silence fell—then chaos erupted far louder than before.
“Within the city? Then he’s been living among us?!”
“That makes no sense…”
“On what basis are you saying this?!”
Understandably so.
A contractor of the Abyss could never live normally inside the city.
Setting aside the constant whispers of darkness trying to dominate their mind, it was impossible to avoid detection from Brion’s numerous barrier devices.
“…Do you know what this is?”
The uproar was silenced by the contents of the box Gildetti placed on the central table.
Inside were multiple traces of the Abyss.
“Traces of the Abyss have been found throughout the city. Some from hours ago, others from years back. Do you know where the oldest trace was found?”
“…Where?”
“Funnily enough—on a statue in the temple symbolizing the great god.”
“…Good heavens.”
The implication was obvious.
“One trace might be coincidence. But this many cannot exist in the city unless he has been among us.”
That the Destroyer Gaiman had lived among them in the city for years.
There was no other explanation.
“I can’t believe it… To think we lived with such a monster for years without knowing.”
“The temple is supposed to be inviolable. We never imagined he’d come and go there.”
“…How could someone consumed by the Abyss do such a thing?”
“Is he maintaining full intelligence?”
As the commotion grew, Gildetti’s gaze turned toward Dohyun.
Watching the only one who remained calm, Gildetti suddenly asked,
“May we hear the honored guest’s thoughts as well?”
All eyes turned to Dohyun.
“…By honored guest, you mean the Otherworlder?”
“Indeed. I am curious about his perspective.”
To them, Dohyun was undeniably someone from another world.
His viewpoint would naturally differ.
Silence fell.
Receiving everyone’s attention, Dohyun finally spoke.
“Actually, I couldn’t just sit still either, so I conducted a few investigations myself.”
“Investigations?”
“Yes.”
Dohyun rose and began walking slowly.
From the table toward the front wall.
More precisely, he was reaching for the water on the shelf mounted there.
After pouring water onto a handkerchief beside it, he suddenly began wiping the worn cloth-wrapped staff. High Priest Gildetti frowned.
“…What are you doing?”
“Just a moment. Mm… okay. Cleaned nicely. See? Maintenance is important.”
“Lord Kaiser.”
Though Gildetti showed clear discomfort, Dohyun paid no mind.
As if the light wipe wasn’t enough, he even poured water directly over it and scrubbed before finally looking satisfied and continuing.
Gildetti’s face had already hardened.
“In fact, I visited the Ominous Mist Zone.”
At those words, Gildetti’s stiff expression visibly wavered.
The others were equally shocked.
“The Ominous Mist Zone? How could an Otherworlder…?”
“Not many in Brion even know of that place.”
“Could you explain, Apostle?”
They simply couldn’t understand how an outsider had found it.
The one who answered was not Dohyun—but Gamilion.
“I told him.”
“…High Priest Herti, you did?”
“Yes. Given the severity of the situation, I felt we couldn’t remain idle, so I only provided the information… It seems he found it safely.”
Though Gamilion was disguised as the high priest of a shabby, unpopular temple, he was still genuinely a high priest.
Moreover, he had never caused trouble and had a reputation for being flexible and reasonable.
Not many were close to him—but neither did anyone dislike him.
With his endorsement, no further explanation was needed.
“Ahem. If High Priest Herti says so…”
“It’s been a while since you stepped forward, High Priest.”
“Haha, the situation is rather serious.”
With Gamilion’s banter fading behind him, Dohyun continued.
“That’s enough about why I went there… Do you know what I saw?”
The meaningful remark shifted attention once more.
“Hm? No one should have set foot there.”
“You saw something in the Ominous Mist Zone?”
“…What did you see?”
“Were there traces of that bastard?”
As elders and even Gildetti watched intently, Dohyun answered without dragging it out.
“No. I found nothing.”
“…Hm?”
“Then why—”
Before they could finish, Dohyun cut in.
“However, I did discover something else important.”
“What was it?”
“There was a cave there… but it had collapsed. The side had melted so badly I couldn’t tell whether the entrance was the front or the side.”
The high priests and elders tilted their heads.
“…The cave collapsed?”
“Melted… Could it be the Destroyer Gaiman’s doing?”
“Hm, perhaps a natural disaster. Just a collapsed cave alone is ambiguous, but it may be worth investigating.”
Though confused by his somewhat exaggerated gestures, opinions began to split.
Watching them, Dohyun drove in the final nail.
“But that’s not the important part.”
“Hm? Not important? What do you mean?”
Though the question came from an elder seated above, Dohyun’s gaze was fixed on Gildetti.
His eyes were asking a question.
“…Inside that cave, I found Sir Zerdik. Dead. Quite miserably.”
If Zerdik had missed the meeting due to circumstances—
Why was he dead in a collapsed cave?
“W-What?!”
“Is that true, Apostle?!”
At the bombshell, the elders shot to their feet.
If that were true, didn’t it mean High Priest Gildetti had lied?
Countless eyes demanding explanation turned toward him.
And they saw it.
“…High Priest?”
Gildetti’s eyes—shaking violently like an earthquake.
“…That can’t be true. Say something, High Priest Gildetti.”
“No, that’s impossible. Are you really going to believe a mere Otherworlder’s words?”
“But it’s true Sir Zerdik did not attend.”
Those seeking explanation, those suspicious, and those denying—
They were all in turmoil.
Step. Step.
Meanwhile, Dohyun slowly approached.
Gildetti, belatedly regaining his senses, barely managed to speak.
“…What exactly are you implying?”
“What am I implying?”
Now standing right before him, Dohyun slowly curled his lips.
“I’m saying you killed Sir Zerdik. Isn’t that right, High Priest Gildetti… no—Destroyer Gaiman.”
“…!”
At the same time, Dohyun’s hand moved like lightning.
[Thousand Forms transforms into ‘Bastard’s Training Sword.’]
[Darkness Shroud is applied to Thousand Forms.]
[Mana is consumed every second.]
The worn staff had already become a sharp sword, wrapped in pitch-black darkness.
Thrust!
Before the man could react, the blade pierced a heart—
“Keugh…!”
A choking groan burst out along with the red light only Dohyun could see.
But the groan did not come from Gildetti.
It came from the middle-aged knight standing slightly behind him.
“Sir Taksinel!”
“Apostle, what are you doing?!”
“What is the meaning of this?!”
The one Dohyun stabbed was not High Priest Gildetti—
—but Sir Taksinel.
And in Dohyun’s eyes, he could see it.
[Eye of Truth activates.]
As if a switch had flipped when the heart was pierced, a fierce red light poured out.
Destroyer Gaiman.
It was exactly the same light he had seen from that monster.
“….”
The one who had burned the city ten years ago, causing countless casualties.
The traitor whose identity Zerdik tried to expose even in death—
was none other than Taksinel.
