After a long spree of chaos, Yena eventually disappeared with a huff, accompanied by a blue light.
From the moment I had obtained all the Iron Soul Swords, it was practically as if I had cleared the dungeon.
Messages were flowing right before my eyes.
[Sub – You have cleared the truth of the Ore Monster.]
[A large amount of experience points has been gained.]
[You have obtained the Broken Iron Soul Sword (Mythic).]
[You have obtained the title, Slayer of the Ore Monster (Mythic).]
[You have cleared the training quest.]
[Calculating rewards…]
[The dungeon will collapse shortly.]
The Iron Devourer is already a released being.
The dungeon held stories of the past, but the original Iron Devourer had already continued its activities outside.
Even though I had caught the Iron Devourer now, I would need to catch the one outside once more.
Since I had already used the Celestial Being’s Stone, I couldn’t summon Ertarn again, but that was fine.
“As long as my power returns.”
Even if hundreds of Iron Devourers rushed at me outside the dungeon, I was confident I could win.
I looked back at Ertarn while gripping the Broken Iron Soul Sword that contained the Iron Devourer.
True to being a monster born from rocks, its expression was calm, yet it looked quite amused.
She glanced at me and then softly smiled.
“Take care.”
“I’ll come visit later.”
“Sure.”
As Ertarn crumbled away, all that was left was the Iron Devourer, who was watching closely.
“Iron Devourer.”
-……
“I have a lot I want to ask. Since it seems like you might collapse soon, I’ll just ask briefly.”
– You can talk.
“What’s here isn’t the main body, right?”
– Correct.
“Where is the main body?”
– I don’t know.
“You don’t know?”
– Main body. Mind. Separate. Mind here. Main body… has no intelligence.
“Why is that?”
– I don’t know. At some point… it became like that.
“……”
[Not lying, right?]
[Looks like a lie.]
[Yena’s weird feeling.]
[Yena, Yena… now the Iron Devourer is joining too?]
[It’s a newcomer, haha.]
It didn’t seem like a lie.
The Iron Devourer had become smarter, but it wasn’t the type to deceive or set traps.
One possibility could be the example of Myeosin.
After escaping from the Space of Despair within my soul, Myeosin met the Administrator, received an offer, and became the Representative of Kiki Island.
Basically, it was akin to becoming an ‘NPC’ in the dungeon.
The Iron Devourer’s situation seemed quite similar to Myeosin’s, so it was possible it had received a similar offer.
From the moment the Iron Devourer used ‘Myeosin’s Technique,’ it was almost certain that someone’s intervention had occurred.
“I’m more inclined to think it has lost its memories.”
Perhaps the consciousness was another possibility created by the Administrators.
“Is there no connection to the main body? It seems like you’ve drawn power from it.”
– Until just now, yes… but now it’s cut off.
“Ah, it’s over. It’s cut off now.”
Boom!
“The dungeon is collapsing.”
I asked one last time, resisting the force trying to expel me.
“When I go back, I’ll find the main body first. It should be easier to find outside the dungeon.”
– “I’ll do it.”
“Alright.”
[Settlement complete.]
[Representative of Kiki Island, intimacy with Myeosin increased.]
[Title, Savior of the Continent? (Hero) obtained.]
[The dungeon is collapsing.]
■
“Miss Yena!”
When I returned to the unsealed temple with the Iron Soul Sword, I saw Yena standing there dazed.
Seeing me, Yena let out a squeak and bolted out of the temple.
“What is it! You’re going to prank me again!”
“Have you looked around here?”
“Look around for what?”
“It’s changed, you know.”
“Changed? What…?”
Yena turned her head with a grumpy expression.
Then, she instinctively grabbed the Green Hermit, startled.
The original temple had been filled with chains and talismans.
Even though they’d been torn apart and heavily damaged due to the unsealing, it wasn’t as if there was ‘nothing’ here.
Even the temple seemed a bit old but was still largely intact.
“What’s this? Was it like this originally?”
“It’s strange. I barely feel the presence of the Iron Devourer.”
It felt as if the very existence of the Iron Devourer had been erased from the temple.
I floated lightly, feeling the holy presence for the first time in a while.
“I sense a lot of life reactions nearby… there’s some unknown intention here. Iron Devourer?”
[?]
[???]
“Iron Devourer?”
I lifted the Broken Iron Soul Sword.
It was silent.
It wasn’t just keeping quiet.
Only a small amount of the Iron Devourer’s power remained; no sign of its mind or soul was felt.
I immediately used the techniques related to Holy and Tracking to spread my power across the entire continent, but soon withdrew it and realized something.
It’s gone.
‘The Iron Devourer has disappeared.’
“……”
“Uh? There’s someone in that village. Didn’t they all die before? Lady Lily? What’s going on?”
“The Iron Devourer is gone.”
“What?!”
[?]
[What the hell!]
[Really?]
[No, my iron monster!!!]
[Is this a joke?]
[How is it fair to give and take back like this??]
I set off with Yena towards a village not far from here.
The seemingly intact village was filled with people who looked quite surprised to see us suddenly appear.
Of course, they had shocked expressions but didn’t seem frightened.
After a moment of standoff, a man who looked like the village chief stepped in front of us.
“What’s this? Who are you?”
“Have you seen any monsters around?”
“A monster? What kind of monster?”
“It’s a monster that eats iron. It’s about the size of a small hill and has teeth like steel. It ruthlessly attacks villages.”
“I have it. They ruthlessly raid villages, you know.”
“That’s the first I’ve heard of that.”
“Nyaa?”
“……”
The village chief tried asking the people touring around, but not a single person knew anything.
Listening to what they said, it seemed that not only Iron Devourers but other monsters were nearly non-existent as well.
Something feels strange.
I was engulfed by this strange sensation and headed toward another village.
■
After wandering through various villages across the continent, there was still not a single person who knew about the Iron Devourer.
Since all traces of the Iron Devourers had vanished, the residents’ memories of it also must have been erased.
From what I’ve gathered, there seemed to have been ‘sorcerers’ here too.
However, it looked like the sorcerers had lost their influence long ago, with their powers seemingly spread evenly among the residents.
Even the young children wandering around felt like they had the spiritual power of a Level 3 Sorcerer.
Adults generally exerted around the strength of a Level 2 Sorcerer, so it seemed that no matter where you went in the village, most had that level of power.
A world where the distinction between ‘sorcerer’ and ‘criminal’ had disappeared.
And this world was different from the one before I entered the dungeon.
‘Something must have been manipulated. Whether it was the system or someone else.’
Changes began to occur as I cleared the dungeon.
After chasing the traces of sorcerers, I was able to find the crumbling Sorcerers’ Association Headquarters.
The appearance of the Sorcerers’ Association Headquarters looked similar, but its size seemed to have shrunk to about 1/20 of its original.
Yena, familiar with the building, grimaced in disgust, yet she leaned in curiously, peeking.
“It’s completely run down, isn’t it? It doesn’t look like it’s being managed at all.”
“Is there anyone here? They seem to know someone…”
There were indeed people inside the crumbling building.
When I released a Wave of Holiness as a signal, someone came out from inside the building a moment later.
Creeek…
“Who goes there? Who are you?”
“Niaz?”
“Eeh Eeh?”
“Do you know me?”
Niaz.
The head of the Sorcerers’ Association and a Level 1 Sorcerer who had passed the Iron Soul Sword to Ryuin.
She had suffered a defeat from me once but was powerful enough to toy with most rankers.
[???]
[What the heck?]
[You’re still alive ㄷㄷㄷ]
[Huh?]
[You’ve aged a lot.]
Previously, Niaz appeared to be in her early to mid-30s, but now she had become an old lady with white hair.
However, it seemed her spiritual power hadn’t diminished much, as she still exuded power equivalent to a Level 1 Sorcerer.
“Yes, aren’t you the head of the Sorcerers’ Association?”
“Sorcerers’ Association… It’s been a long time since I’ve heard that name. Indeed, why have you sought me out?”
“Do you know about the Iron Devourers?”
“…Iron Devourers?”
“Ears?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm… I feel like I’ve heard that name before, but I just can’t place who it is…”
Niaz looked up at the sky for a moment, then shook her head.
“It sounds familiar, but I have no idea who it could be. The Sorcerers’ Association fell apart a long time ago, so it’s possible it’s a name from the records of ghosts in the past.”
“Is there any chance there are records left?”
If there are records, I might learn the cause behind this massive manipulation.
But just as I hope, Niaz replied calmly.
“Unfortunately, all the records have crumbled with time.”
“…I see.”
“Is there anything else you’re curious about? No one ever comes here anyway. I’ll satisfy any curiosity you have.”
“Really don’t remember? I’m Yena?! What about Lily? Ryuin?”
Yena suddenly stepped in between Niaz and me, asking.
Yena seemed unable to understand how Niaz could forget in this situation, but Niaz simply shook her head.
“If it’s Ryuin… he was a remarkably talented child. A bit reckless, though. If his lifespan had been just a little longer, he could have been superior to any sorcerer in the world. Beyond that, I don’t know.”
“What about Six Stars?”
As soon as Niaz heard the mention of Six Stars, her expression turned gloomy.
Looking at her face, I felt I could guess.
‘They all died. It seems like they died of old age rather than anything else.’
Clearly, a considerable amount of time had passed since the Iron Devourer’s seal was lifted.
Niaz seemed to have become weary and gently pushed away the approaching Yena, then looked at me.
“Let’s not discuss that. Don’t you have anything more to ask?”
“……”
“You?”
This is a strange situation.
The source of the incident, the Iron Devourer, has vanished, the deceased residents have all lost their memories and been resurrected, and the village has completely erased all traces of its past.
It is truly a bizarre situation, yet I felt a simultaneous sense of ‘familiarity.’
There may be a couple of things off, but it feels very familiar.
‘If my guess is right…’
“Could you lend me a hand?”
“A hand? Here you go.”
Thud. Niaz casually placed her wrinkled hand on top of mine.
As her holy power enveloped Niaz, she widened her eyes and started trembling slightly.
The composition and structure, as if glued together, along with the rather familiar ‘processing method.’
All evidence points to one conclusion.
The resurrection technique manifested by the Demon Race.
‘Immortal’s Domain.’
The Black Lily is here.
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