TLWCL 19🔐

TLWCL

Chapter 19 …

After finishing dinner and leisurely drinking a cup of tea, a knock sounded at Antonio’s door.

It was Ethan, holding a sword.

“And there was something the blacksmith asked me to explain…”

It was about the sword of the Lion’s Heart. Since the emblem would be easily recognized, the blacksmith had made a slight “modification.”

In addition, he had included extra functions — an automatic retrieval enchantment that would return the sword to its owner, and a perpetual sharpness enchantment so the blade would never need to be resharpened.

Not having to sharpen it sounded convenient enough. But now that this had become reality, I couldn’t help but wonder — how exactly does the automatic retrieval work? Wouldn’t it be dangerous if the blade flew back at me edge-first?

“The blacksmith has truly bestowed you with fine enchantments,” said Antonio, the merchant lord with hair like gold.

Well, if someone like Antonio said so, it must be true.

The sword’s new design was impressive — so ornate that even I had to admit it looked luxurious. Even if it didn’t belong to the Lion’s Heart Order, it would still stand out anywhere.

Not that it mattered. I hadn’t sought out this sword for my own use anyway. Sure, with my size I could swing it around, but really it was just a club — only sharper.

“The blacksmith also sent another message.”

“Yes, go ahead.”

“He said he did not answer during the inquisition — so please tell you it wasn’t he who reported you. Truly a righteous brother of the forge!” Ethan said with a big grin.

“I see,” I replied calmly.

I had more or less expected that.

I had a strange certainty that no one would speak my name during the interrogations. Even when I heard they were investigating and questioning people, I hadn’t felt especially afraid.

Why was that?

When I first heard about the inquiry, I had felt an icy dread down my spine — but thinking about it now, there was no real reason to panic.

Somehow, the fear was just… gone.

It was as though the very sense of fear had vanished.

Even when I brought my hand close to the sword that radiated holy energy, I didn’t think it could cut me. Like a lab rat in an experiment where fear and anxiety had been surgically removed…

But really, why had I been so afraid when I first heard about the inspection?

In any case… they wouldn’t have answered the inquisitors.

They couldn’t have answered them.

[Faith required for enhancement: 200]
[Would you like to enhance the relic ‘Necklace of Lanoop’?]

Suddenly, a status window popped up in my vision.

‘Huh? I didn’t open the interface.’

Not now, though. I needed to send these people off first.

“Thank you, brother. It’s late — travel safely.”

“Yes! Call for me anytime you need!”

I sent Ethan on his way.

“Antonio, isn’t it time for bed?”

“Papa… I’m sleepy.”

“Ah, I see. Then I’ll turn in too.”

Antonio and his daughter went to their bedroom. I turned off the lamps, left only a small one burning, and went upstairs to my room. Then I reopened the window.

[Faith required for enhancement: 200]
[Would you like to enhance the relic ‘Necklace of Lanoop’?]

I’d planned to enhance it once I got home anyway, so maybe something had glitched and popped the window up early.

I shrugged.

‘Y.’

This time, there wasn’t the blinding light from before — only a faint glow spreading from around my neck.

[Relic: Necklace of Lanoop | +2]
[New sub-effect: Automatic Purification of Bearer’s Body]

Oh. So it went from manual to automatic cleansing?

A perfect effect, considering I was leaving for the Witch’s Forest tomorrow.

‘Yeah, it’ll be another long day tomorrow.’

With a dull headache setting in, I soon fell asleep.

“Safe travels, pilgrim.”

“Yes. Take care of things while I’m gone, Antonio.”

I departed for the Witch’s Forest with a believer who could handle the reins.

Antonio had gone out of his way to find a trustworthy coachman — someone said to follow the “holy pilgrim.” Apparently, after watching my healing in person, he had come to believe in me deeply, so we got along fine.

“So the place we’re going… it’s really a cursed forest? And you’re going to lift the curse, pilgrim?”

It was easier to just go along with the lie.

“Yes. Think of it as a kind of pilgrimage.”

“As expected of you, holy one. It’s an honor to accompany you!”

Sure, sure~

It was convenient when they fired themselves up with devotion. I could now understand why cult leaders thrived so easily in the modern world.

‘Ugh… I feel like such garbage.’

— But you need to survive, don’t you?

‘…That’s true.’

The carriage carried the two of us for half a day before reaching the outskirts of the Witch’s Forest.

“Brother, please wait here. The miasma in this place is strong — without divine protection, you’ll be poisoned.”

“Yes, understood.”

Good. Just don’t run off. Not that I was worried; he was one of my followers after all.

I turned and walked toward the dark, ominous expanse known as the Witch’s Forest.

“Ugh~ why are there so many bugs?”

The buzzing near my ears was maddening.

Fortunately, they weren’t ordinary insects but venomous ones, so those that touched the aura of purification surrounding me dropped dead — like flies hitting an electric zapper.

“Begone, you spawn of Satan.”

I waved my hand, and they popped midair with little sizzling sounds.

“It’s like the Amazon in here.”

The humid air clung uncomfortably to my skin — a stickiness that even divine purification couldn’t remove.

“Should be just a little further…”

A bitter medicinal scent filled my nose — something like licorice from an old apothecary.

As I walked along the familiar path, the poisonous moths and frogs vanished, and even the trees and plants grew sparse.

‘Found it. A special object.’

A skeleton, completely bleached to bone.

Probably one of the tribal corpses Cardil had mentioned.

A decent man might have buried it somewhere sunny, but alas, I wasn’t that kind of man.

Dead was dead. Just a calcium structure now. Unless it had a lingering soul fragment or something—

Wait. Why was I even thinking like that? Souls and spirits… I wasn’t a shaman. Ha ha…

The ground leveled out ahead, and I heard the sound of water.

“Oh… that’s worse than I imagined.”

The lake wasn’t purple or green — it was black.

Blub, blub.

Bubbles rose and burst on the surface.

‘Ugh, I have to dive in there to find the chalice?’

I couldn’t even swim well — and now I had to wade into this bottomless black lake to search for a cup buried somewhere in it.

Great.

Luckily, the “cup” was more like a trophy-sized chalice; if it were any smaller, I’d never find it.

I dipped my arm into the water. A clear circle formed around me, but quickly turned black again.

‘So that’s not enough, huh.’

I pulled my arm out. The droplets that fell to the ground hissed and dissolved.

‘Good thing I brought spare clothes…’

Though I’d left the spares in the carriage to keep them from getting contaminated — meaning I’d have to trudge back through the damp forest half-soaked. Fantastic.

Still, for a relic, this much effort was a bargain.

‘Easier than slaying a dragon, at least.’

And easier than obtaining the Holy Sword, too.

I waded in fully clothed — it’d all corrode anyway once it touched the water.

As the black water reached my waist, it cleared around me. My feet touched the bottom — not too deep, thankfully.

The “Cursed Lake” got its name from the opaque water that hid the depths. It had once been a spring, so it wasn’t actually very deep. The pollution hadn’t changed the terrain that much.

“Brr… cold.”

The real problem was the temperature — no sunlight reached this forest, so the water was freezing. Like dipping your legs in a mountain stream on a blazing summer day.

I didn’t think this body was particularly sensitive to temperature, but the cold here made me shiver uncontrollably.

“Uuuugh…”

At this rate, I’d die of hypothermia.

I flailed my arms and legs to stay warm, praying that Cernuan Lumière’s body had decent heat retention.

Thunk. Something brushed my toe.

The water reached my chest, and the area within about three meters of me was clear enough to glimpse what it was.

‘Round and dark… can’t see it well.’

I nudged it with my foot — it felt metallic.

‘They said even steel weapons would melt in this lake.’

So if metal still remained here… it had to be a relic.

I dove underwater. Even with the purification light, the murky darkness made it hard to see, so I released more energy. The water glowed faintly, illuminating the bottom.

‘There it is — the chalice.’

Got it. My long arm — befitting someone nearly two meters tall — reached out and grasped it.

“Pwah—”

I surfaced, my white hair plastered to my face. I brushed it back and lifted the object.

Where my fingers touched, the corrosion peeled away, revealing gleaming platinum beneath the grime. The blackened trophy regained its true form.

A system window appeared.

[Relic retrieved!]
[Unclaimed relics: 2/9]
[Next relic retrieval deadline: 30 days]
[Sub-quest reward selection in progress…]
[Reward loading time: 00:29]

Last time it had taken an hour — now only thirty minutes.

Seems the system patch had shortened the waiting time in small ways.

‘Why does it need to “load” anything when it’s just going to hand me another random reward?’

Ugh. It’s so conspicuous — how am I even supposed to carry this thing? Maybe if I enhance it with faith, it’ll auto-bind to me again.

I turned to leave the water.

And froze.

In the dark forest where sunlight barely reached, someone was standing.

‘Ah!!! What the—!!’

My heart nearly stopped.

No one could stand in this miasma and still live. Which meant… that wasn’t human.

‘How did it get here?’

I wasn’t exactly afraid, but I was definitely uneasy.