The road we are walking on is a wide avenue flanked by tall buildings.
It’s a four-lane road commonly found in any city regardless of the country or region.
There wasn’t a single passing car, and the absence of signposts or lane markings made it seem a bit empty.
However, it had a certain shape, and with a sidewalk alongside, it could barely be called a road.
“I accidentally discovered this place while exploring the outskirts of the Void,” Wip explained ahead of us.
“Originally, the Void is a chaotic world where everything is jumbled up. The ground can be slanted vertically, and there can even be lakes in the sky; yet, here, a small urban center has strangely formed.”
“Is it a coincidence?”
“Most likely, yes.”
For some reason, Wip’s words lacked certainty and felt vague.
I suspected that normally one couldn’t alter the terrain of the Void, but some might be capable of doing so.
For example, high-ranking beings like a Dark Elf Grand Priest, or perhaps a necromancer who has operated as a lich for a long time.
“Sounds plausible…?”
I took a moment to feel secretly proud of my rational deduction.
Meanwhile, Wip walked ahead without any hesitation.
There was no uncertainty in his stride. His expression was calm, devoid of any tension.
He exuded a peaceful atmosphere as if he were simply out for a stroll.
In contrast, Yao and I followed them cautiously, looking rather anxious.
“This place is uncomfortable.”
Yao, who had started filming with her smartphone, was pouting.
I also wasn’t in the best mood to scold her for whining when I felt just as uneasy.
Even just breathing felt bothersome, and standing still made my shoulders and legs feel heavier in this strange place.
The Void was more repulsive than I had imagined. Even demons hesitated to enter it for a reason.
“I guess we picked a good spot.”
If anything, even Rema the Great Demon wouldn’t be able to come here, even if he pinpointed the location of the injured Returnees.
But could we really leave patients in such a gloomy energy-laden place?
I still felt anxious, yet I decided to let it go.
He couldn’t have brought us here without a good reason, so I focused on my mission as the archbishop to heal the patients.
“Ugh, Archbishop…”
“Exhibit the virtue of patience. If you recite the verses or prayers in your heart, it should help.”
“I don’t know those yet.”
“Then allow me to share them with you.”
I began to teach the whiny rookie Holy Knight the basics of the scriptures as we kept moving forward.
Eventually, I adapted a bit and leisurely took in the scenery of the Void. Yao, quick to notice, adjusted her camera angle to match my gaze.
I infused my voice with Sacred Power and spoke as naturally as possible.
It was then that I activated ‘iTuber Mode.’
“I’m currently in the Void.”
“What?”
Suddenly speaking made Wip, who was leading the way, turn back.
“What did you just say?”
“I’m filming an iTube video, so you don’t need to worry.”
“Oh, I see.”
The Dark Elf smiled awkwardly, then walked in silence for a moment before turning back to me.
“Is it alright if I introduce the Void to our viewers?”
“Ah, would you?”
A mystically alluring Dark Elf male as a Void guide—what an unusual combination that could either boost or baffle the iTube views.
I happily accepted the offer, and Yao captured Wip on screen, soon leading into the introduction.
“Shall we start by looking at the sky?”
Following Wip’s gesture, I looked up.
The sky of the Void was not blue, but a bizarre mix of purple and navy, swirling together.
Wip kindly revealed the secret behind the two colors.
“That isn’t the real sky; it’s the Void Power. To put it simply, it’s mana tainted by negative energy.”
So, that too turned out to be mana. Indeed, everything in this world boils down to mana.
“Can it be used as a substitute for mana?”
“No. For anyone who isn’t a dark mage manipulating dark magic or a Dark Elf delighting in all kinds of mana, merely touching it is dangerous.”
I nodded along, then another question popped into my mind.
“Why is there so much Void Power here?”
I wasn’t entirely sure if saying it was abundant made sense, but it was indeed excessively so.
With that much around, all Dark Elves across dimensions could come for a death and chaos mana party.
“It is indeed excessive here. The world I lived in after reincarnation had a deficiency instead.”
“Is that due to environmental pollution?”
“Well, it is true that the natural environment is polluted, but I hesitate to pin it down to that one reason.”
Wip, with his pretty face scrunched up in thought, eventually continued.
“Archbishop, do you know when the first Returnee appeared?”
“I believe I read about it in the Green Wiki. Probably around the mid-2010s.”
2016.
Coincidentally, that was the year I possessed this body. Not that it means much, but it was a rather strange coincidence.
“Why do you ask?”
“Actually, I returned around that time too, and back then, mana was abundant on Earth.”
“…Really?”
What kind of thing is this?
As I widened my eyes in surprise at the unexpected information, Yao chimed in suddenly.
“Now that you mention it, that guy without parents used to complain that mana was decreasing too much these days and that he was getting weaker.”
“Is that so?”
“At that time, I just thought he was making excuses for his weakness since he spent all his time eating and playing… was it real?”
For someone who had conquered a world, it seemed a bit one-sided that Liam had outperformed him.
Could that possibly have been the reason?
I gazed at Wip with lingering skepticism, but he offered me an awkward smile.
“I don’t know exactly why mana is rapidly disappearing. However, it is a fact that the reality world’s mana has diminished, leading to an abundance of Void Power here.”
“……”
That smells fishy.
It was still an ambiguous suspicion at most, but I felt it wise to remember these suspicious circumstances.
“Can we continue the introduction now?”
“I’d appreciate that.”
Wip resumed his tour guide duties for the iTuber audience.
Each piece of information was useful, and I listened carefully while we kept walking.
I wondered how long it had been.
“Oh, we’ve arrived.”
Just as Wip finished the tour, we reached our destination.
I looked up to survey the building in front of me.
Unlike the broken-down buildings surrounding it with cracked walls, the three-story building stood intact.
Though its roof was completely gone, the rest of it was in remarkably good condition.
“This could work as a hideout.”
“Yes. It wasn’t easy to find. Shall we head inside?”
Before entering, Wip suddenly wrapped his arms in Void Power and extended them outwards.
Then, strange tattoos marked on his bronze skin, which had been hard to see until now, became clear.
They looked complicated at first glance, but I could recognize them from what I learned.
Those were summoning seals in tattoo form.
“Come forth, Shattered Land.”
Wip’s call made the tattoos shine, and the nearby atmosphere warped.
Before long, a creature slowly emerged from the void.
A beast with six legs, as fierce and ugly as the monsters I saw during the ‘Tower of Hell’ climb.
But wasn’t it named something else back then?
“Did you change its name?”
“Oh, I usually name them whatever comes to mind. Since the monsters inhabiting the Void don’t have a fixed form, I think it should be the same for names.”
“…Is that so?”
It was a sentiment that was difficult to accept for various reasons, but I decided it was best to roll with it.
“Shattered Land, go find the Archbishop and Hee-jun.”
The creature, whose name had changed yet again, growled lightly before scampering off toward the entrance of the abandoned building.
From just the look of it, it seemed like it would rebel against its owner’s words, but unexpectedly, it was loyal like a hunting dog.
“Archbishop, let’s head inside now.”
“Yes, let’s.”
Could this finally mean meeting another Returnee?
Holding my breath in anticipation for the encounter with potential new members of the congregation, I stepped inside.
As I passed through the empty space where the door should have been, I entered an unusually structured indoor area.
Above was the wide-open ceiling that revealed the sky filled with Void Power.
For some reason, the ground was covered in thick, black grass resembling the back of a giant beast.
And at each corner, there were rectangular stones presumably serving as beds, each occupied by one person.
Undoubtedly, they were injured Returnees.
“Archbishop?”
At that moment, while I was checking on one of the Returnees, a woman made eye contact with me. It was Hainha.
“You’ve come. It’s nice to see you.”
I politely bowed and approached Hainha, who was diligently handling her tasks.
Our national intelligence agent held a tablet PC in one hand and a stylus in the other.
I knew she was busy gathering information on the Returnees but didn’t expect her to personally come for an investigation. If I had known, I would have come with her.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“Not at all, it’s for the nation.”
Hainha, providing a model answer as an intelligence agent, bowed her head to me and began scribbling notes.
I wondered what she was writing so earnestly.
I craned my neck and peered at a nearby Returnee’s information that was briefly displayed.
—–
[NO.3 Reeve]
– Possessed
─ Returned after living for about 17 years
– Possessed Work: [Land of the Priest]
─ A single RPG game about becoming a priest worshiping various gods
—–
[Land of the Priest].
It was a game produced by Arise, the company that created [Apollis Tales] and its sequel [Solar Scepter], which I possessed.
Another person besides me had possessed a game from that company?
It was intriguing, but the next line was less so.
—–
– Characteristics: A high-ranking priest with the position of the highest priest, but the connection to the goddesses he served was severed for an unknown reason upon his return.
—–
‘…Connection severed?’
As a fellow priest, I couldn’t help but feel pained by that content.
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